I enjoy, no LOVE, my place at Rose Valley Lake in PA. Perhaps you have seen some of my photographs that I have posted here ocassionally, or visited my  sets on Flickr (around Rose Valley Lake and  creeks and rivers)  The beauty remains despite reasonable and rational development.

I love it so much that I am, In fact, disappointed every time I have to leave here to return to “Civilization.” That said, I also understand that private citizens have a right to use their private property in ways that they see fit, so long as the proposed uses are in line with the general guidelines and zoning of the area.

The “Friends of Rose Valley Lake” are stepping beyond the bounds of good citizens, as they are now seeking to block an individual from using his property in accordance with the zoning laws of the area. They are asserting that by granting this man access to his property (through the State fish commission property) he will somehow be violating the law.

They write on their homepage that:

” The ‘intent’ for Rose Valley Lake, was to ‘prevent developments . . . and retain the area in generally primitive conditions,’”

They then are somehow complaining that this citizen is willing to “trade with the PFBC one acre of land (generally inaccessible to the public) and $15,000 in exchange for an expanded farm lane right-of-way through Rose Valley Lake.”

Apparently the fact that he isn’t asking for a flat trade of one acre for another, but rather giving the state the land, AND $15,000, isn’t sufficient. Also, apparently the statement that the one acre of land is “generally inaccessible to the public” is meant to imply that is somehow a negative. Interesting in that many believe that in order to meet the objective of maintaining land in “generally primitive conditions” we should keep people from going there. (Remember, the biggest enemy of National Parks tends to be visitors to those same parks….)

One final comment from them. They are argue that the proposed trade would be for an “expanded farm lane right-of-way through Rose Valley Lake public lands in order to facilitate private development.”

Note this citizen isn’t proposing to DEVELOP public lands. He is simply seeking access to his privately owned property, so that he can exercise his legal right to develop his property as he sees fit, in accordance with the local zoning ordinances.

I ask–who are the unreasonable ones?

Also, they are requesting people sign their petition, but there exists no comparable avenue to elicit support for the land owner.  I have created a form, and would appreciate your taking the time to respond.  And for the record, I am interested in learning about BOTH sides of this.

I actually presented a paper on the challenges of digital textbook pricing at the Western DSI (Decision Sciences Institute) conference in 2011.   You can read the paper here.  In that paper, I point out that by driving the logistics costs of moving, handling, and returning paper products out of the system, along with other costs such as maintaining a bookstore, one can drive the costs down to about (surprise!) $15.00 while maintaining the 2 year profits of the publisher. And by withdrawing the pressures of the resale market, the profits only go up from there.

First thoughts that led to that paper were written about here  and here.

Most recently I wrote about  consumer driven markets. Who should make the  choice? Digital textbooks are able separate the content from the medium, and allow flexibility–unless we are locked into a hardware platform.  I also wrote about this in this post.

I would welcome other thoughts on those posts and on the paper.

from the article:

For $24.95 a month, the service will give users unlimited access to its library of 11,000 audio books through its website and an HTML5 mobile app.

Though Amazon-owned competitor Audible has a monthly membership, it relies on a credit system that give users access to a certain number of books per month depending on the fee. Audiobooks is the first service we can find that is streaming books using a monthly model.

I am intrigued–and I started to wonder how many people actually listen.  Please take the time to fill out my survey, I would love to know what your preferences are!

(and, don’t forget to listen to our version of audiobooks–the Real Tech for Real People podcast!  Go visit http://rtfrp.com and get the latest episode!)

One drawback had been that Amazon never explained how to get to the highlighted texts or notes when you were using a Kindle app–whether iPhone or Android.

Luckily others have deciphered this for us, and have developed a program that will generate a text file from the data file.  (The information in the apps is stored in *.mbp files, because they, like the core Kindle format, are based on the MobiBook standard.)

To find the files (in Android devices) go into the file system, either through a USB connection, or using a file explorer program such as Astro File Manager.  From there search the /SDCard/Android/Amazon/Kindle folder for the files.  You will need to do a little exploring here if you want to only get the information from one file, since the books are named with the Amazon naming convention and not using “book titles” as we know them.

From here, either copy the files to your computer or email them to yourself (or put them in your dropbox on your Android and expect them to be on your computer.)  At that point, just move the files to the folder on your computer where you have installed the mbp reader program, and you are off and running!

The first two were aimed to address the issues at the heart of the charges being levied against Penn State in the scandal–that there was a cover-up, and that leaders of Penn State perjured themselves–lying in court rather than allegedly tell of the evils revealed to them.  The last one? Transparency?  Where did that one come from?

Calls for transparency arise when people believe some one, or some organization, is perceived to be acting in secret, and that secrecy is assumed, rightly or wrongly, to be covering improper or even illegal behavior.  Often the charge of improper or illegal behavior is warranted, and often it is not.  Of course, we rarely remember those instances when things ended up perfectly but as humans we are “inclined to believe the very worst about anything and everything.” (see “Free: The Future of a Radical Price,” below).  Of one thing we can be sure–when an organization commits to transparency they are doing so because of a perception that they haven’t been, and they need to change. ¹

In this case, Penn State faced tough critics from around the nation that felt that a cloak of secrecy pervaded the actions of the University that at best hindered investigations into Sandusky, and at worst enabled his predatory behavior.  Then, as the crisis broke, the lights in Old Main were on, but the President of the University was no where to be seen.  Depending on who you follow he was either hiding, or he was being held back by the Board of Trustees.  Then, the Board began their activities in near silence allowing just enough light in to let us know they were “engaged.”  Many questioned how the whole Board could both remain silent at this critical juncture in Penn State history, and how they could all unanimously support what seems to many to be terribly wrong decisions.²

In response, we saw a promise from Erickson, the interim President of the University, to transparency.  He wrote:

Penn State is committed to transparency to the fullest extent possible, given the ongoing investigations.

• I commit to providing meaningful and timely updates as frequently as needed.
• I encourage dialogue with students, faculty, alumni, and other members of the Penn State community.(http://president.psu.edu/promise.html)

So we have here a practical application of how Penn State will be “transparent” but not much of a definition of what Transparency means.  We have an expectation to receive “timely” updates, and that they will be “meaningful.”  But no clear definition of what even “timely” means.  And updates on “what?”  Finally–who determines “frequency?”

To be clear then, what is the definition of “Transparency” that Penn State is using? According to Tactical Transparency (see below) there are traditionally two definitions of transparency that are already accepted–financial transparency, and governance transparency.  Publicly traded companies are already required to provide certain financial and governance information.  But we are seeing companies stepping beyond that simple definition.  But before we go much further on what this “new” or modern view of Transparency has become, let’s quickly review: once again, we have documentation on how the university’s governance has been anything but transparent, and those with any memory longer than 6 months will remember the significant battles Penn State has fought to keep from disclosing salaries and other financial information.  In fact, just last month the Philadelphia newspaper, the Philadelphia Inquirer wrote:

The school has long had a reputation for guarding its secrets closely and zealously, and when the state attorney general announced the charges against Sandusky, she said their investigation , by a grand jury with subpoena power , had been hampered by an uncooperative atmosphere among unnamed school officials.

In addition, the NY Times wrote concerning the unique ability that Penn State has to use a cloak of secrecy:

But the public’s access to e-mails, phone records and other potentially critical evidence is restricted because Penn State has a special exemption from having to disclose a host of information that state agencies and many other state universities are forced to divulge under Pennsylvania’s Right to Know Law.

So there you have it–Penn State has been reluctant to release information and in fact has engaged in legal battles to keep from releasing even those records usually expected from government and publicly traded companies.

These first two definitions of transparency, long held, and expected. And yet, Penn State hasn’t even met those expectations. But this is not the transparency Erickson was discussing.  It was clear he was talking about a new form of transparency–a transparency to the inner workings of the University.

This transparency is about the reputation of the University (or any organization).  It is one that builds credibility.  That instills trust. That, as a senior leader for a major retail firm recently told me, is “opening the Kimono” and letting the stakeholders see just how things are being done.  I don’t think anyone can argue that the comment from the President is one driven by a need to restore the reputation of the University.

In the case of Penn State I think they set themselves up for failure from the start.  First, they failed to define what they meant by transparency, creating a vacuum that is filled by whatever definitions the hearer expects.  (Not unlike “Change you can believe in…” led many to vote based on a blank check).  Second, their behavior didn’t change. I don’t think you can argue that you are “more transparent” when you do things essentially the same way you always have done things. [4. This is the essence of the article from StateCollege.com–that this is how things have always been done.)

Much of the background and thoughts on Transparency comes from the book Tactical Transparency: How Leaders Can Leverage Social Media to Maximize Value and Build their Brand as well as from Free: How Today’s Smartest Businesses Profit by Giving Something for Nothing

Does transparency mean that you tell everyone everything you do and why do it?  bust you violate all levels of confidentiality?

It seems to me when people an organization promise transparency, they are acknowledging a problem and suggesting they can no longer continue doing things the way they have always been done.  I realize this is not always the case, in that sometimes we’re just promising to foster an environment of trust, but that trust is based on the concept of sharing information.

reach leads me to ask these questions is the reality of organizations promising transparency while then defending your actions as being consistent with how things have always been done. If things have always been done this way how is that being more transparent?  Or to put it another way, if you have always been transparent why promise transparency as if it is something new?

I welcome your thoughts on these questions.

Check these, and the other gift ideas out–and don’t forget your favorite Professor! (Even if it isn’t me!)

Please, take a minute and leave your story in the comment section!

Thanks!

On Veteran’s Day, Genesis10’s founder and CEO Harley Lippman and newly appointed Manager of Diversity and Veterans Relations, Richard Sanchez, were interviewed by MSNBC’s Dylan Ratigan about the challenges American Veterans face transitioning their careers from the military to corporate America. Watch the clip here:

Working with Genesis10 means working with a company that is dedicated to serving our community where and when we can. Veterans Outreach is our latest initiative whereby Genesis10 will partner with clients to identify opportunities for U.S. Veterans. Using training and mentoring programs in place internally and through external partners, Genesis10’s Veterans Outreach will prepare and support Veterans during their career transition from the military to the private sector.

If you know a Veteran who may benefit from this program, we want to know. You or the Veteran can send a message directly to G10Veterans@genesis10.com. Please share this message with your network. We ask you to help us spread the word – because by working together we can connect and support the men and women who served to protect our freedoms with new career opportunities in business and technology.

I would encourage everyone to share this post, the video link, and the email address with anyone who is either a veteran, or knows a veteran–or knows someone who knows… (you get it–tell everyone!)

The primary and secondary schools systems are selecting a specific device and the books are content to go on that device. In this case, the system purchases the devices and the content and then delivers that to the student. So who is the consumer in this case? Setting aside for the moment the argument that the taxpayer is always the consumer, let’s focus on whether the consumer is the school district or the student. We can all agree that there are many stakeholders in this arrangement: the school board, parents, teachers, students, taxpayers, and I’m sure many others. But when I consider the consumer, I am considering their role in consumer plays in shaping the marketplace. In this case, while the students consumed the content, the school board by virtue of the purse string is the consumer. We can hope they are making wise decisions as they select the best combination of hardware, software, and support infrastructure.

Given this scenario the selection of a specific hardware platform makes sense. As a consumer the school district is selecting an all encompassing solution for all to use. This approach will undoubtedly balance the educational needs with the technological abilities, and of course the fiscal reality is the school board faces. The district will be able to leverage their scarce taxpayer dollars to get the best benefit possible. Are there limitations to this approach? Perhaps. There might be better solutions that only run on a different platform. But those are the tradeoffs one makes when one selects a technological platform on which to base decisions. We must satisfice.

Not consider the higher education model. As professors and students alike start to look towards digital textbooks as a valuable and viable alternative to the costly new-used-new book cycle we find a new challenge. In the old paper based book paradigm each professor selected the content and the medium for delivery of the material for their class. As I wrote previously this whole paradigm the content and the medium are inextricably entwined. Each selection of a book was in and of itself the selection of the ecosystem combining the technology (paper) and the content, and quite frankly the support infrastructure. Digital course content (textbooks) separate those.

In the old paradigm the student as consumer handbook three choices. They could buy the book new, they could buy the book old were used, or quite frankly they could choose not to buy the book. They controlled the purchasing decisions and there were really no other considerations of value for them or their professor since all books were delivered in the same – way as complete units. Now, we have some separation between the content and the media.

So who is the consumer and how does that shape the market? Following the old model the professor will select the textbook and the student will be expected to buy that content. If we allow the old system to continue unchanged the faculty member may continue to select what they feel to be the best possible text for the class without regard to the delivery media they will be forcing upon the student. Of course, they are decision may well be driven by the technology they happen to own and not the technology the students own. A professor with an android tablet may well selected android specific text applications while another faculty member with an iPad may well selects iPad content applications. This becomes especially problematic when faculty are selecting multimedia are rich content that may only work in one operating system and not the other.

Purchasing decisions than shift from the student who controls their own purse strings and now can fall on the faculty member who is on constrained by the fiscal realities their students face. It is quite possible for students to need three separate portable digital devices to support three or more classes. The student, by my definition earlier, is the consumer who must make the purchasing decision but that decision has been taken from them.

Once again, we see the value of interface and interoperability standards that cross the various platform divides. Rather than develop operating system specific applications, textbook publishers should work to ensure that their content can be delivered across the wide spectrum of portable devices available. Certainly Amazon has provided that ability through their multiple instances of the kindle application. If a professor assigns a Kindle book a student can easily select that content to view on nearly any device. With the maturation of HTML5 hopefully we will see more and more experience-based course content available and not tide to specific platforms were operating systems.

This will then returned the student to the role of consumer allowing them to make the decision about which media device best fits their needs and wants, while allowing the faculty member to select the content that they believe best fits their course requirements.

I would love to learn your thoughts on the role of consumer in education, and not just in relation to textbooks but who the consumer really as in both primary and secondary education as well as higher education.

Tweak me @SCMprofessor with your thoughts or share them here.

For centuries our ability to gather content and disseminated wirh tide is not just to the content but to the media and the physical media that was used for delivery. If you wanted to read a book you would buy both the content and the delivery media simultaneously. The words in the paper on which they were printed or written were forever enmeshed. Even in recent decades with books on CD or tape you were still purchasing both the delivery media and the content as an inseparable unit.

We have an opportunity to day with the development of digital content and robust data exchange standards to forever separate the content from the media, or at least that will we use to receive the content. We’re at a crossroads. We can choose to follow the path of standards allowing users to decide on the delivery mechanism they prefer, or we can continue to develop content for delivery in specific devices and tools.

We’re currently entering a world where we have a wide variety of choices for the personal technology we use to access media. For instance, we have both been nearly ubiquitous iPad and now more and more android tablets on the market. We’re also seeing the early stages of windows eight tablets being previewed. If we take a device centric approach content will be developed and delivered as operating system specific applications. This will enable content creators to leverage the unique creative aspects of each of the operating systems and the devices. But it will limit the flexibility of the user and potentially limit the consumer base. Imagine if there is compelling content available for an android, and different yet equally compelling content available on the iPad. If you would like to consume the content available on both devices you’ll have to make an investment in each of the devices. If however the content creator focused on developing inside of existing content delivery standards the user will be free to choose the marriage of device and content that works best for them.

In the early days of conversations about developig media rich textbook on tablets, the discussions centered around the iPad and how to make compelling applications for that device. Once the android operating system began to get traction however the discussion we found devices competing not only for consumer selection but for the ability to consume content. This opens up a whole new avenue for the consumer where they get to choose both the delivery tool and the content that they to consume.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s the content standards movement focused on Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) as a platform and application agnostic means of sharing and transferring content. This then evolved into the heart of the world wide web with the transformation into HTML.  Now, some browser developers added unique features to their implementation of HTML but over time they all seem to have come to the realization that standardized interfaces and interactions are better for all. This has now evolved into HTML5 and the integration of multimedia and interactive content into the markup language.

So here is the call—content creators and publishers need to focus on platform and application agnostic means of delivering their content. If they have a creative and innovative multimedia presentation they wish to provide they would do well to follow the lead of Amazon and other eBook resellers and develop their content for delivery using HTML5.  There are significant benefits to the publisher and content creator to this approach. First, the creators and publishers will not need to develop separate approaches for each and every device available to consumers. They will be able to create once and distribute to many. In addition, by following this open approach to content delivery they will please their consumer by allowing their consumer to choose the tool that works best for them while opening the door to significant increases in sales by offering their content to the widest selection of consumers available.

One final note: there are other benefits as well including the encouragement of design innovation in the devices separate from the need to maintain compatibility with specific applications running an existing hardware and software designs.

Win. Win. Win.

To hear more on this topic, listen to our discussion on the upcoming Episode 97 of Real Tech for Real People.

There are intrinsic motivators–those things you do because you are just internally motivated to do them.  Perhaps you enjoy a task (graphic design, podcasting), or you feel a “calling” to be doing something (the preacher on the sidewalk, the environmentalist chained to a tree.)

I am wondering–what motivates you? And specifically, what motivates you at work?

Do you live to work, or do you work to live?

RESEARCH:

–noun

1. diligent and systematic inquiry or investigation into a subject in order to discover or revise facts, theories, applications,etc.: recent research in medicine.

2. a particular instance or piece of research.

SCHOLARSHIP

noun

1. learning; knowledge acquired by study; the academic attainments of a scholar.

Upon further clickage, a scholar is defined as

“a learned or erudite person, especially one who has profoundknowledge of a particular subject.”

Interestingly, there is no such distinction in definitions for Researcher vs Research.

If we look at what defines the two is the distinction one more of the approach used?  Is it that a “researcher” follows a “systematic approach”  to gathering new information–a methodology, if you will, while a scholar may not follow such a rigorously defined structure?  It that is the case, I would as that you answer a few questions:  researcher of scholar?

While perusing Gina Trapani’s blog from Smarterware.org, I saw she too struggles with sharing her varied, yet often inter-related, interests.

She writes:

It’s a tough question to answer, especially when you’re not working on a single thing. Last weekend at Foo Camp I failed miserably at explaining myself and my slash careers and how they all intersect. But at that same conference, I had the pleasure of attending a session by David Eaves, who eloquently explained that his goal is to apply his experience and training in negotiation skills to open source community management. On his site, he published a map of his past, current, and future work, and how those activities all interrelated. Cool!

When I read this I had one of those “DUH!” moments. It’s a brilliantly simple idea.  I like the way it forces some things into reductionism (you have to determine a fixed set of spheres–how many do you REALLY have?).  In addition, this approach can even help one find relationships between work that seemed “intuitively” there, but were never explicitly stated, even to oneself.  And finally, the approach David and Gina have both taken is to show how they are seeking the “greater good” (or a “Better world”) through their work.

The Venn Diagram David Eaves created is below.  To see the one Gina put together about her interests and work, go visit the link (really–you should!)  To see mine…. well, that may take a while longer.

Feel free to share yours here, or just put a link to yours in the comments!

I just want to quickly point out a few things, as I prepare for tomorrow night’s Real Tech for Real People podcast (listen live at 9PM ET).

1.  It’s not just computer security–it’s your personal security.  Sony unfortunately stored way too much information about you on their site and in the clear meaning that the hackers got people’s passwords, and credit card numbers, as well as other personal identifying information.  Talk about “bad juju.”

2.  Safe computers are not “safe” any more.  No computer is safe.  And neither are you.  Gone are the days when malicious hackers want to destroy your hard drive, or play silly music, or just replicate their software.  Today’s hackers would prefer you not even know they have made it onto your machine.  They want your passwords.  Your bank account information.  Your social security numbers.  Oh, and your CPU cycles.

Today’s infestations are sneaky.  They don’t advertise through garish graphics and sounds. They sneak on and install keyloggers ².  Or Trojans, or Backdoors.  Or “rootkits.” They all have one goal–to NOT be detected while they steal your precious information, or your computer processing power itself.

3.  In an effort to steal your valuable information and even assume your very identity, hackers still rely on the most trustworthy of approaches–the CON.  Yes, they will practice “phishing”   tossing out bait through mass emails to see if anyone (you?) will log on to a look alike site (bank site, FaceBook, Twitter, whatever…) and then they will simply take your user name and password as you type it in.  Even more “evil” is the approach known as “spear Phishing.” In this attack they go after specific targets, sending emails that really do seem to be sent to you directly. You “trust” it…

According to the FBI Spear Phishing works like this:

First, criminals need some inside information on their targets to convince them the e-mails are legitimate. They often obtain it by hacking into an organization’s computer network (which is what happened in the above case) or sometimes by combing through other websites, blogs, and social networking sites.

Then, they send e-mails that look like the real thing to targeted victims, offering all sorts of urgent and legitimate-sounding explanations as to why they need your personal data.

Finally, the victims are asked to click on a link inside the e-mail that takes them to a phony but realistic-looking website, where they are asked to provide passwords, account numbers, user IDs, access codes, PINs, etc.

This particular attack has recently been made simpler by the loss of the email lists by the mass-marketing firm “Epsilon.”  Perhaps you received an email from one of your banks, or stores your frequent, or travel company, notifying you that their marketer’s system was hacked.  Sadly, this means you can no longer trust emails from those firms to not lead you astray.

All of these stories (and many more) should have you a bit concerned.  Computer security is now no longer about people stealing internet, or putting destructive programs on your hard drives.  No longer is it simply your $1000 computer investment that is at risk.

It is your identity.  And it is time to protect yourself.  In my next post I will share some tips, and software tools, that you can use to help build a protective barrier around your computer, and your identity.

Ojime are hand-carved sculptures that originated in Japan.

From about 17^th century, the Japanese people (especially the men) carried a small compartmentalized box called an Inro. There was also a Netsuke to balance the Inro over the person’s sash and an Ojime to slide down the string and keep the Inro closed.  By the end of the 19^th Century, they had evolved into elaborately carved boxes with the accompanying Netsuke and Ojime. While many people are familiar with the larger 2” Netsuke; Ojime are typically between 3/4 inch to 1 inch – a perfect size for 1/12 scale miniatures. The Ojime are found in most of the same designs as the Netsuke.

Go visit her site, and check out the wide selection, ranging from cute bunnies to skulls, cats, monkeys, and large wild animals.

Relaxing in the summer sun.

At $2.99 an image, how can you go wrong?

“For those questioning the appropriateness of the celebrations on Sunday night, especially at PSU, keep in mind that many of us were In middle school. Those were the most impressionable days of our lives. It completely changed our lives and views.”

He wrote much more, and I took the liberty of making it more readable, and posting it over at our joint blog, http://thefathersonchats.com.

Please, go read his thoughts, and share yours. These thoughts are the ones we need to share, and preserve.

• Select a word: Double click the left mouse button inside the word to be selected
• Select a sentence: Simple. Hold down the CTRL key, and then select any word in the sentence (single click).
• Select the whole paragraph: TRIPLE click any word in the paragraph.

I used to use a Targus Wireless Presentation Remote for presentations.  I love the sleek design, and the fact that the USB wireless connector would fit inside the remote.  It was easy to use, and flawless in execution.

And alas, easy for me to lose the USB dongle.

I recently attended a conference where I presented my paper on eTextbook pricing (more to come on THAT later) and I found myself in desperate need of a remote.  Nothing is worse than wanting to be able to roam the room to connect with the audience, and yet become trapped to the front of the room hitting the “ENTER” key.  My first thought was that I would need to walk a mile or two to the closest office equipment store.  But then I realized that I had a IOGEAR Bluetooth dongle already on my computer.  It was a simple matter of finding the right software to run on my android phone.

Enter PPT Remote Control.  I searched the Google Market and found a number of options.  I read the reviews, and then downloaded the “free” version of the application (limited to 15 slides.)  I liked it, so I went ahead and bought the full version.

So what did I like?

First, it did exactly what I needed it to do.  It controls my PowerPoint presentations, but there is more to it. The app downloaded the slides to the phone so I could look at my phone and see where I was in the presentation, and it also downloaded any notes.  I was able to have my crib notes right there in my remote control!

Some of the additional details (after the break):

• Bluetooth support.  Obviously what I was looking for
• WiFi support. If you happen to be on the same network that is a great option! ¹
• Requires an app to be running on your computer, but that is the extent of the set up. Effortless.
• Use it in “pointer” mode.  Puts a “red dot” on your screen you can move using the remote as a “mouse.”  Who needs a laser?
• Many other features–go check out their site.

Download the app using the QR code below, or visit the main website at: http://pptremotecontrol.com/index.html

We don’t like PowerPoint and we don’t like presentations.  But as much as we want to blame the tool we find we cannot leave this crutch behind.  Perhaps it is because we do not see it as a tool that assists in our delivering content but rather as a surrogate, a stand-in,  so that we aren’t the ones being observed, but rather it is our slides.  Too often we expect (or are required) to have our presentations “stand alone” or worse “speak for themselves” (I say worse, because when given this mission it rarely actually means including the voice of the presenter, but rather that the written words must contain all the thoughts.)  Yes, we cannot leave the world of wordy slides.

Chris Brogan at the time reminded us of the importance of “big pictures” (real images) that convey the emotion, or the sense of the topic discussed, but that we as the speaker should deliver the content.  He also shared that we should remember that presentations are about the audience and our connecting with the audience.  If we are to connect, we cannot have them getting lost in reading the words (the many, many, often forced to be tiny, words…) on the screen.

Here is another take on just that very thing:

So my question for you is this:  What sort of presentation do you prefer? Do you want all the information laid out before you in verbose slides, ensuring you have all the information at your fingertips for later, or are you instead a person who learns best by listening and asborbing?

Leave your comments, or tweet me @SCMProfessor

Let me highlight a few tools that have been developed to (supposedly) make presentation development easier (or catchier, or “better” … ).  The first is “SlideRocket.’  SlideRocket is a presentation tool that lets you develop and share your presentations through a web based platform. I have given it a few run-throughs in the limited/free online version, as well as stepped through the tutorial, and I find that it generally helps develop solid, even “attractive” presentations.

The second tool is “Impress” that goes with the OpenOffice Suite.  While this tool is not “cloud based” it is provided as part of the open sourced suite and has a comprehensive feature set, including being able to import and export PowerPoint presentations.

The third and final tool is Google Docs Presentation.  This is a relatively light-weight presentation development package, but it has enough features to get your point across, and do it through the cloud using a  web-based interface.  Perhaps the best feature of this (and really any Google Docs tool) is the opportunity to collaborate on the development of the document. Being able to watch and interact with the document and my collaborators in near-real-time is quite an effective, and efficient, way of moving any idea forward.

These are just a few of the possible alternatives. I would love to hear what YOU think are possible PowerPoint stand-ins. Comment here, or tweet me. I am @SCMProfessor

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Twitter has proven itself to be an amazingly useful tool.  Remarkable considering it was only introduced at SXSW in 2007.  We have seen Twitter move from a discussion about “what I had for lunch”, into a tool used by people daily to find topics of interest to them usually because their friends view them to be interesting as well.  And recently-well, we have seen Twitter used as a tool for social and political change.

This is what’s most interesting about twitter.  Twitter is not one thing.  It’s not even a couple of things.  Twitter is an amorphic tool, that is shaped by the way each and every user will use that tool.  Individuals use twitter to share information or thoughts for the day.  Corporations use twitter to monitor what people are saying about their product and in the case of Comcast stepping in and fixing problems customers are having.  Some corporations are even using twitter as a marketing tool offering free products through drawings.  Many even blend twitter with face book to create a more socially aware, new media presence.

Herein lies the challenge: there is no quote user end quote of twitter.  There is no specific use case of twitter.  Where many predicted the death of twitter once britney spears and Ashton kutcher arrived we have seen twitter continue to thrive and grow.  What these doomsayers failed to understand is that while the arrival of these celebreties to Twitter may have removed them from the “most followed” ranks of Twitter, people were not forced to follow these people.

The magic of twitter is that we choose the people we follow.  We can even block the people we wish to have not follow us (sort of).  We create our own tribes as Seth Godin would say.  I personally have several tribes if you will that I view as my friends, or people I follow, on Twitter.

Here are my tribes:

1. Educators
2. Real people who use technology
3. Supply chain people
4. Family and friends
5. People who discuss politics (on all sides of an issue)

So what lessons can we take from this as marketing people looking at twitter?  I think you can walk away from twitter knowing that everyone there are seeks information that is of value to them.  Not everyone uses twitter in the same way, but everyone is there to gain value for themselves.  For some the value comes in being able to share information they have, while for others the value is simply seeing what people they respect are thinking on specific topics.  These range from political viewpoints, to the latest cool tech application, to experiences as a diabetic or even sharing a favorite restaurant.  We need to find the value that we provide to those who want to follow us.  What would make someone want to follow me on twitter, and how can I deliver that to them?

So as we step forward I suggest we keep in mind my following “main points of twitter”:

1. People follow you on twitter-so while it is transmit not everyone will receive
2. People follow you because you do or say something of interest.  Stay on topic!
3. Provide value in your tweets.  Give information, insights, links, or all of the above.
4. The twitter stream is just that-and it flows past people.  Don’t expect them to see everything you say
5. You can reach people that are not following you when engaging in popular topics.  Watch the hash tags.
6. Don’t hijack a hash tag!  Be relevant.

You might think about donating your computer to a school, or other charity. And when you do, you know the conventional advice, right? “Be sure to completely wipe your hard drive.”

(More after the break!)

While we used to recommend you WIPE your hard drive, we now recommend you remove it, and physically destroy it. Hard drives are now true commodities and your older computer can still be useful with only a $50 hard drive installed.  Even better, donate the computer (sans hard disk) and then donate the cash to the charity to BUY a new hard drive.  In that way, you don’t have the hassle of justifying the value of the computer, and the hard drive you purchase.  You can deduct the cash donation directly.

But then again–I am NOT a tax attorney, so don’t trust my tax advice.  Just trust me–you don’t want to give away your hard drive.

One final thought:  you might want to consider destroying your old hard drive.  While there are various techniques out there, I wouldn’t recommend the one in the video below (but it looks fun!)

To hear more on this discussion and much more, listen to Real Tech for Real People at http://rtfrp.com, episode 76.

This sort of scenario falls easily into the realm of “doom and gloomer” crackpots. (Ed Dames even has a Video The Killshot.)   But Scientists are warning that this particular solar cycle, and our dependence on electronics, could be catastrophic.  This article describes things in economic terms, but imagine the potential harm that can result in $2,000 BILLION in losses.

According to this story, we were visited by another flare, but luckily it was weak in comparison.  I include an excerpt below, but recommend you read the full article.

From the article:

The sun is waking up from a long quiet spell. Last week it sent out the strongest flare for four years – and scientists are warning that earth should prepare for an intense electromagnetic storm that, in the worst case, could be a “global Katrina” costing the world economy $2,000bn.

Senior officials responsible for policy on solar storms – also known as space weather – in the US, UK and Sweden urged more preparedness at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington.

…

In terms of terrestrial vulnerability, the biggest change since the 2000 peak is that the world has become more dependent on global positioning system satellites – and not just for navigation. The world’s mobile phone networks depend on ultra-precise GPS time signals for their co-ordination.

Recently, my wife switched over to the Samsung Captivate phone (the same one Android based phone that I use.)  She wanted to get a case for it, so she went to our local AT&T  store to find one.  The salesperson there recommended the Otterbox Commuter Series Shield for the Samsung I897 Captivate (Black).  I liked it, so I bought one as well.

Since getting the phone, I have been sporting a nice rubbery silicone case.  It provided some measure of protection, and generally kept my phone in good condition, but never quite “felt” right.  The hardshell cases that were available all made the phone too thick, taking away one of the advantages I saw in the Captivate–the sleek and thin design.

Enter the OtterBox.

The Otterbox combines an inner rubbery silicone case with a hardshell “sleeve” that provides impact protection and absorption.  In addition, the soft shell covers the power button and volume rocker, while also having a “plug” to protect the headset port from dirt, grime and fluids.  And it does all this while adding no significant bulk to the phone.  The case also comes with a self-adhering screen protector, but as you all know, I prefer to use ZAGG screens “invisishields.”

Oh–and while I bought mine at the AT&T “authorized dealer” store,¹  you can get the Otterbox series for about half the price through Amazon.

Learn more about this tip, and many others, in Episode 69 of Real Tech for Real People.  You can subscribe to our podcast on iTunes–simply search for RTFRP.

I have been assigning blogs for my “Service Operations” class for several years now.  The purpose of the blog is to have the MBA students reflect on a service experience they have recently had and then directly analyze the experience in light of the topics recently covered in the course.  The challenge is quite like the one my brother pointed out–the writing dropped off when they began to feel that no one (least of all, the professor–me) was reading.  My first response was to mandate commenting, similar to what he  mentioned–a sort of stick to the carrot.   Of course, that is difficult to enforce, and leads too often to a quick “nice blog–thanks.” type of analysis.

I have attacked that in four specific ways this semester.

First, I have created a Google Reader bundle which I distributed to the class (and now to you! )  This addresses the issue of me not getting to all of the blogs–I simply work down the full list every week and find some amazing blog entries! In addition, by giving them the bundle, I have directly connected the students with one another and their writings.  That has led to more direct initial engagement. But I suspect that this will not be the “fix” that I hope it to be if there is no way to encourage engagement.

Second, I have used Google Forms to allow students to evaluate their team members’ blogs. I have given them criteria on which to evaluate the blogs of their team-mates, and;

Third, while I treat the responses as confidential information, I share the summary information with the class regularly.  In this way I remind them that others are reading their blogs.  For instance, one of the questions is whether the blog entry covered a positive or a negative service experience.  I used this as a question specifically to encourage a more reasonable balance in the class, since we are more likely to remember (and write about) negative experiences.  As you can see, the balance, at least so far, has shifted to positive experiences. ¹

Finally, I directly reference their blogs in class, asking the author to perhaps lend more backstory, and then weave their narrative and lessons learned into the content of the course.  This works even better when other students are encouraged to share their views on what they took away from reading that blog.

Have any of you found ways to encourage commenting and engagement on blogs? Share it here (seems sort of META doesn’t it?)

So far, many have found it to be quite useful, but it was initially limited to Windows versions of Word because Microsoft removed VBA from the Mac versions  Microsoft has since added VBA back in, making the macro accessible for users of both Mac and Windows.

If you have a Kindle, feel free to try the macro.  If you like it, please consider making a donation–every $1 dollar helps.

Sure, I know some will say “But it’s WIKI… it’s not to be used for academics! It’s not reliable!”  To that I respond–then take the time, as an expert in your field, to clean up what you think is incorrect–it is, after all, editable by us. Make your contribution to the greater good.

Now, the video:

Well, as an iPad user and an observer of tech, I was a bit surprised by this.  I have seen many iPads showing up around campus, and in other places, and almost exclusively I have seen it used as a reader (PDFs for class, books, and such) and as a device to view movies and shows.  Actually, I have seen less “video” than text on the screens of those around me.  I would venture to say that for most people the use of the iPad remains consumption.

I mentioned that, and my brother challenged me, arguing that he, and his colleagues, are using the iPad quite regularly for note taking and email.  I had to agree, but then…. we learned.

See, for me the operational definition of “content creation” is something that is substantive.  I have a definition that looks at the degree, or dare I say it, quantity, of the “content” being created.  I never viewed writing emails, taking notes, or editing existing slideshows as real “content creation.”  And I certainly don’t view arranging photographs into a slideshow as a “content creation” event.  The creation of the content in that case was during the translation from the photographer’s eye to the sensor in the camera.

So things came down to “Operational Definitions.”  In research we are often faced with the need to not just have a  simple definition but one that we can use to clearly differentiate between things, and more specifically, to transfer from a qualitative assessment to a measurable response.  For instance, we often talk about “small businesses” but without an “operational definition” we open ourselves up to a wide range of mis-communications.  For instance a small business can be measured as:

• a level of revenue (less than 1 million a year?)
• a level of profit (less than 1 million a year?  Notice that the same dollar figure leads to two very different thresholds)
• a number of employees (less than 5? 50? 500?)

So then, we are now faced with the question, how do we define “Content creation”?

Is it simply “creating a document of some sort and any size, so that something that did not exist, now does?”

Or does it require a greater degree of creativity and involvement in the process?

So readers:  I was wondering how you would define “Content Creation” and what amount of additional creativity do you believe needs to be brought to the process?  Please–comment here so others can see your thoughts!

I know, I should be doing all sorts of things techie, and you might think I am “all over the net.” But I am not. In fact, I not only don’t like the invasion of privacy that is so often the net, I actively choose to not invade other’s privacy as well.

So let me share my little rule book with you.

1. I view twitter as I do the ocean. I can’t take it all in, even with the people I follow. I will read any and all messages sent @ me, and also the direct messages. I will try, when I am on, to scan the twitter feed of people I follow, but just as I can’t catch every wave when I am at the beach, I can’t read every tweet that flows my way.

2. I don’t chase down people’s comments and statements on “the Facebook.” My family will tell you that. When asked by my kids or even my wife “did you see ____ on Facebook?” My answer invariably is “No.” They have learned–if you want to be sure I see something on Facebook, you might want to let me know through some other means (say, an @ comment or DM on Twitter–or an email!)

3. If a platform is not meant to be a social communication platform, I DEFINITELY don’t go there often. This includes Flickr, and PicasaWeb, and Youtube. I view these sites as places to go and see the creations of others, and perhaps be inspired. I certainly don’t go there for conversation. If you thought I had been reading your conversations there, i am sorry. It wasn’t me.

4. Honestly, I only put things on these sites that I want to have out there, and am willing to share with the world.

5. I have no expectation that the world will care, or even visit anything I write, or photograph, or post. If no one visits, then that is fine. I am not hurt.

6. If I create something for someone (think–water polo videos, or slideshows) I will point out that it is available.

7. Finally, I believe protecting other’s privacy is so important that I actually think long and hard before posting things that include other people in them, and often will ensure (double, and triple check the privacy settings) that I have shared certain things only with those people. Generally these are family photographs, or photographs from events, and I will share those with “family and friends.”

So there are my “not so short” rules that I live by when it comes to social media.

Now, dear reader, let me ask you: are you more or less open with your life and sharing your thoughts with the world now that we are in the era of “social”?

Or more importantly–do you really know just how much you are sharing, and how much “anyone” can actually see?

Let me know YOUR thoughts (in the comments, or in twitter! But remember to @ me, or I might not see it. LOL)

Be sure to visit our Real Tech for Real People Facebook page and listen to our podcasts every week!  You can find the podcasts over at RTFRP.com or subscribe via iTunes.

And don’t forget–you can save 20% on any order from ZAGG.com simply by using the discount code RTFRP at checkout!  (Good until the end of 2010.)

Remember, you can save 20% on ANY product you buy from ZAGG.com simply by typing RTFRP into the discount code at checkout.

Click Here to listen to Real Tech 56

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PLAY ON: Jason Leisure has convinced me to go back to it. Rocking–and even has iPad app (Steve) It works inside the house, and gives access to a wide range of video sources, including NHL, MLB, HULU, CBS and others. It supposedly supports streaming out to the iDevices through 3G and other wifis, like AirVideo but I can’t get that to work… more to come…

Josh recommends SquareTrade for your electronic warranties, and honestly, so do I! Why? This LifeHacker article says it best–They are less expensive AND cover more things, including glass breaking (see next story). Apple Care doesn’t cover broken glass/screens.

PICKS of the WEEK:

Tony: Jason O – http://www.jasonomusic.com/home.html

Steve: Overdrive Media Console THE Software to listen to audio books from your library–for free! Check to make sure your library supports online electronic books, and you are in! (Runs on Android, iPhone/iPad, Blackberry and Windows Mobile. Also, Windows and Mac. (and they have free audiobook samplers!)

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Steve’s info:  [blog] http://theprofessornotes.com[twitter] @scmprofessor

Tony’s info: [blog] http://getthenext.com [twitter] @tonypittman

For those of you that have been following along, you know I co-host Real Tech for Real People, a podcast for “people with Tech in their lives, but who don’t live for the tech.”  We have created a Facebook page (and I encourage you all to visit and subscribe) and as part of that page I am going to be doing “tutorials” for things people want to know how to do.

WebCamMax is the perfect tool for me to record this.  I want to be able to switch between cameras, and screen shots, when preparing the tutorials.  So if you go watch the first video I did, on how to create a book from a collection of Wikipedia pages, you will see I start with a camera shot of me, and then switch to the screen shots, live as I edit.  I switch back and forth between me, and the screen.  WebCamMax makes that as simple as selecting a different button on the main WebCamMax screen.

WebCamMax also allows me to just select an area of the screen, or a window on the screen, and transmit that.  I have used that when Tony and I are recording our podcast on skype, so Tony can get a good video recording out of skype, while I transmit the audio AND NOW VIDEO to the chatroom as we record our podcast live (come join us in the chat room on Tuesday nights at 9PM ET– http://tinychat.com/realtech)

WebCamMax also has a few other “interesting” features, some I like, some I won’t use…

First, I do like that it will allow you to use a different background image, without a green screen.  All you have to do is step (or roll) out of the image for a few seconds, while it captures what it sees as your background. It then will replace that background with whatever image you choose to insert.  I will be using this down the road to insert the Real Tech for Real People graphic behind me, for recording the videos and the podcast.  One critical note: Don’t wear something that matches your background.  Just like you shouldn’t wear green when working with a green-screen, if you or your clothing match colors in the background, you will “disappear.”

I also like that, in addition to switching between cameras and screen shots, you can play media files.  This will be useful for me when I record a “how to” video using my Kodak Zi8 digital video recorder.  I can have the file “ready to go” and then just embed it, either with it’s own audio or with my dubbing over it.

You can also add on those “fun” graphics such as hats, faces, and beards and such.  Not exactly my cup of tea though.

I have a few issues with it, but I suspect that my problems are more of my inability to understand the intricacies of the program. For instance, I don’t like having to move my mouse back to the WebCamMax screen to click to change “views” when I have it set to follow my mouse pointer.  That is distracting.  Hopefully I will find a keystroke combination that will let me do that more smoothly.

I also would like to see it be licensed for use on two computers, for those times when I am mobile, and will be using my notebook rather than my desktop.  The software is affordable ($50 for a “lifetime” license) but paying an additional $50 for the privilege of being mobile seems a bit excessive.

Overall, I like it, and I have already recommended it to several colleagues who like what they saw in the video tutorial I put together.

Perhaps there is a very good reason why someone would ask for money for a helicopter (oh, wait–”helOcopter”) ride to JFK–but wouldn’t a cab be more affordable?

From 2010_08_08

I also chuckle at “pan handling” while talking on a cell-phone, and having your Starbucks cup between your feet.

Speaking of “Pan Handling“–feel free to donate to this blog to keep this blog, and the podcast “Real Tech for Real People” moving along!  The donate button is over there on the right!

And I promise not to use your money for helicopter rides.

Also, listen regularly to learn how you can win prizes that you can use daily!

Let us know what YOU want us to talk about.

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NEWS:

Bloomberg predicts Apple’s moves in TV.  Bloomberg expects Apple’s next conquest will be  the TV industry, comparing its early moves to its first steps in the mobile phone market. The article analyzes the technology of Apple TV, noting potential methods through which Apple may approach the TV business.

Bloomberg

Microsoft Office 2011 for Mac – Assuming I can make the podcast, I have 2011 (enterprise have it now, the broader public will have to wait to 10/26) and can make some preliminary comments.

In Brief: Apple TV part cost pegged at $64 Thin-ish margin for Apple on the TV.

TIPS:

Microsoft to debut WP7 smartphones on AT&T;

Microsoft’s Ballmer receives $1.35m pay package, but bonus curbed.  Microsoft will unveil its new line of      smartphones sporting the Windows 7 OS on Oct. 11. The devices are scheduled to launch about a month later on AT&T. IDG reports that Microsoft is the only non-exclusive smartphone OS developer charging hardware makers a licensing fee, noting that vendors receive greater intellectual-property protection through the arrangement. One analyst claims the company offers “a better managed and coordinated ecosystem that might improve the chances of success for the entire platform.” Separately, outlets note that although the compensation package paid to Microsoft’s Steve Ballmer rose 6 percent to $1.35 million in 2010, he was denied the maximum  bonus for the last financial year due to stumbles with mobile products and a failure to respond quickly to Apple’s iPad. Wall Street Journal; 24/7

Wall Street Journal; 24/7 Wall St. (also MarketWatch); IDG/Computerworld; eWeek (1);eWeek (2); Reuters (also CNBC); Associated Press (also Forbes; CNBC; San Francisco
Chronicle)

Chronicle)

iTunes Tip:

iTunes: In iTunes 10 you can double-click on the “Now Playing” window (bottom left, if you have it showing) and it will pop out to show you a small window with the album art. Now if this is a movie, it will play, etc. But in iTunes 10 the album art for music ALSO has controls. So I now have a small square window in the top right corner letting me konw what is playing and allowing me to control the music and I have minimized my iTunes window. Sure I could use iTunes long-enabled mini window for this purpose but this is prettier.

General Tech Tip:

* Wikipedia lets you create “books” of information. If you find a wiki page, or pages, that you would like in a different format, you can now save the page, or pages, as a “book.” On the left hand side of the screen you will see “print/export” as an option. If you click on that, you can see how to create the book. Also more information on my blog at http://theprofessornotes.com or just play around in Wikipedia.

PICKS:

Tony: Magnetic Alphabet
Steve: Book Mobile for Android and http://books.google.com
Josh : VGA to HDMI Scaler/Converter
Chris: Monoprice.com HDMI cables from $1.89

Presentation Clock – tested and using for a debate on Wed. Update from feedback is already being included, this dev responds! UPDATED tonight! Worked great for the debate.

Blog post from Chris on using the iPad:  HERE

Don’t miss the EXCITING news for winning prizes-including TWO TICKETS to Michigan at Penn State (Football).  Listen to Real Tech for Real People for how to win!

Engadget is reporting today that Samsung will finally be releasing the FroYo Android 2.2 update for their Galaxy S phones, including the Captivate for AT&T and the Fascinate for Verizon.  I hope this is the real deal.  We have had so many rumors floating around.

There are many new and interesting features in the 2.2 Android OS, including the new GMail application, and voice dialing (finally?), in addition to “built-in” tethering.

Fingers crossed…

Since the start of the smartphone experience, the hardware and the operating system have been so tightly integrated that one is hard to distinguish from the other.  This started as far back as the Springboard Sprint phone hardware attachment for the Handspring Visor, and continues today with the Windows 7 phones, the iPhone and in reality the Android phone.  But what if the phones (hardware) and the soul of the phones, the mobile OS’s, could be separated?

As the Windows 7 phone rolls out we are once again introduced to a wide array of mobile phone models, names, and interfaces.  We have been seeing that with the Android, with several different Galaxy S phone from Samsung, as well as a variety of “Droid” branded Motorola phones with Verizon.  And of course, as mentioned in the NY Times recently, if you want to get the iOS on a phone, you have to get an iPhone.

But imagine a different world: Imagine a world where the hardware becomes separate from the OS.  Imagine if you could go into a cellphone store, and decide on the hardware you wanted, and then purchase (or just install in the case of the Android) an operating system?  It would seem we aren’t all that far away from this reality.  The processors in the Windows Phone 7 are the same as many of the Android phones.  The memory, displays, and cameras are all essentially commodities these days.  The only real difference is the cellular radios that are included in the phones, and that is network dependent, not OS dependent–three “flavors” for each OS and you are done.

Does this open up a whole new world, or just add to more confusion?

Would YOU want to be able to mix and match the OS with the hardware that you prefer?

Let me know your thoughts.

…players are forbidden from using the popular microblogging service.

The decision follows at least two instances where players were told to take down Twitter posts.²

My first reaction was “Wow!  Banning the use of a personal tool, on a personal phone or computer–that seems a bit Draconian!”  Then I started wondering what I would suggest instead.  After a little thought (very little) I decided this–he should take the same approach that I have had with my children.Football players are taught, or at least trained, to have discipline on the field, and in their practice regimen.  They must learn daily to control their urge to run over someone, to rush to a position, and rather hold their place, watch the play unfold, and then react.

Twitter (and life) isn’t that much different.

This was a “teachable” moment.  The coach (at the college level) is a teacher, a mentor–a COACH.  Take this as an opportunity to remind the players of important life lessons:

• Their words and their actions have consequences.
• They need to learn self-discipline as well as football discipline.
• They need to understand that what is said on twitter (or Facebook, or even a blog like this one) will take on a life of its own, and perhaps spiral well beyond the few people you thought you were talking with at the time.

Banning them from using Twitter teaches them nothing.  They don’t learn how to engage in a social (network/media) setting.  They don’t learn self discipline.

They don’t learn life lessons that they will need once they are off the field.

Sorry Coach–you lose this game.  And unfortunately this is the only game that matters–the game of life!

That said, we don’t charge for our podcasts, but we would love it if you would show your love of Real Tech for Real People, through purchasing yourself, or your loved one, a Real Tech for Real People gift.  A mug, a T-Shirt, a Mousepad… they are all available over at

http://cafepress.com/rtfrp

Take advantage of 15% off on orders over 60%

And if you do, send us your photo with the item, and we will post it here, and over at http://RTFRP.com!

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This episode is a first for us. You can download either the audio, or a VIDEO version of the podcast.

Select YOUR version of Real Tech for Real People!

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Free Phone Fridays at Best Buy! For the month of October! Each week they will include at least one smart phone.

Flexibility is the key to air power, AND ereaders. The F-15C gets a new set of eyes and Sony debuts a bendable e-screen!

AND Flexibility making it’s move to batteries. LiIon battery made on paper by Stanford researchers. Probably won’t be in phones, but could make for “active” RFID technology, among other thin uses.

Speaking of Batteries, Panasonic is finally creating rechargable AA batteries that recharge through frustration! (er, shaking…) Great they say for remote controls, and other hand held devices. About time, *I* say.

We discuss an article that challenges the notion thatAndroid is Open:

Android Is As Open As The Clenched Fist I’d Like To Punch The Carriers With

MG Siegler

Sep 9, 2010

This past weekend, I wrote a post wondering if Android was surging in the U.S. market because Apple was letting it? The main thought was that by remaining exclusively tied to AT&T, Apple was driving some users to choose Android, which is available on all the U.S. carriers. In the post, I posed a question: if it’s not the iPhone/AT&T deal, why do you choose Android? Nearly 1,000 people responded, and a large percentage focused on the same idea: the idea of “openness.”

You’ll forgive me, but I have to say it: what a load of crap.

Old News, but worth mentioning: Gorilla Glass is also in the Samsung Galaxy S displays (and it is transparent aluminum. Sort of.)

And with the Kindle for the iPad/iPhone that feature became even easier with the ability to highlight with your fingertips rather than a joy stick or a wheel.  One of the more recent additions to the various Kindle incarnations is the showing of passages that others find useful as well.  This is done through underlining and when you touch that section of the book it tells you (for instance) “76 other people highlighted this part of the book” which is what it has for a section of “SuperFreakonomics” (The quote being:  ”Doing the math, you find that on a per-mile basis, a drunk walker is eight times more likely to get killed than a drunk driver.” Italics original to text).¹

Of course, all this was made easier by the Whispersync network, ensuring that I could easily move between devices (and moving us one more step closer to ubiquitous reading.)

When I switched over the Android Captivate (AT&T) I was elated to see the Kindle app there as well.  But that enthusiasm was quickly reduced to a sense that I would only read “leisure books” because the Android did not support highlighting, or note taking, although it would “sync” to the furthest read location in my other device(s).

That changed a couple days ago.  The Android Kindle was updated to include the features I wanted most:  adding, editing and deleting of notes,  and the ability to highlight. But the Kindle Krew also added full text search (find those pesky quotes you KNOW are there, but can’t quite remember where² and wikipedia and dictionary look ups.  There are other fatuers added with 1.1 as well as bug fixes.  It even added voice search!

I downloaded it immediately, and upon opening it went to the book I am currently reading, Wrong: Why experts* keep failing us.  I am happy to report that the Kindle App took me to the part of the book where I left off (correctly identifying that I was last reading on the iPad.)  It also showed immediately the highlighting that I had created with the iPad, let me add highlighting, and add notes.  Most importantly when I closed the app and switched to the Kindle on the iPad my new highlighting was there (and it moved me to the latest spot–from my Captivate Kindle!)

No other eReading platform is as diverse or as available as the Kindle platform, and with this revision Amazon once again asserts their commitment to digital books and the eReading public.

I am still left with one question though:  Will the Android Kindle version port well to the Barnes and Noble Nook? After all the Nook is based on the Android OS…

In addition, Tony shares his thoughts comparing his iPhone 4 to his newly purchased Samsung Captivate.  It’s Android vs iOS.  Certainly a don’t miss episode!

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LISTENER QUESTION: Sgt Slade asks…

NEWS:
Amazon takes aim at iPad in the sun. Snarky?

HP Announces an Android Based Tablet (but it seems rather hamstrung)

“Why isn’t the pricing of Broadband obeying Moore’s Law?” The article title is a bit OTT, but the bottom line is quite interesting: Since the buildout is nearly complete, they author(s) argue that the revenue now is almost “pure profit.” Should we expect prices to come down? Or are they displaying a common misperception of economics, assuming that there is a relationship between “cost” and “Price” (there isn’t.)

TIPS

Photo: Just for fun (or is it Phun?) you can get make an overlay to put on your (i)Phone to make it look like a camera. So now, it really CAN be a camera! (or just go to step 7 and download one…) http://content.photojojo.com/diy/make-your-phone-look-like-a-camera/

PICKS:

Steve: TuneIn Radio for the Android
Tony:  TWIT for iPad

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Steve’s info:  [blog] http://theprofessornotes.com[twitter] @scmprofessor

Tony’s info: [blog] http://getthenext.com [twitter] @tonypittman

I found the post to be an interesting read but there exists one GLARING problem:  they misuse statistics and probabilities, and reach erroneous (though perhaps accidentally correct) conclusions.

They are acting as if previous numbers/ratios of hardcover to paperback books remain UNCHANGED with the introduction of digital books.

Let’s say, for the sake of argument, that the split has been 77/23 paperback to hardcover. To come in and say that ebooks are 29% which is more than Hardcovers, but not more than the 77% paperback percentage is, well, silly. That would then result in 129% of sales.

Here’s what the author(s) wrote:

“…But then I discovered a business analyst who’d found an even bigger problem with Amazon’s statistic. According to the Nielsen Bookscan service,hardcover books accounted for just 23% of all books sold in the previous year.

So what happens if you ask how many “printed books” Amazon sold, instead of using the smaller number of “hardcover books”? Following the same ratio, Amazon would be selling approximately 334 paperbacks for every 100 hardcover books — or a total of 434 printed books for every 180 ebooks. That would mean over 70% of the books Amazon sells are still printed books — 180 out of 614 — with ebooks accounting for just 29.3% of all the books that Amazon sells.

I do have to insert one quick correction to their comment: the analyst actually wrote that hardcover books account for “23% of total dead-tree book sales”  and that’s important.

Okay, in reality here is what they did:

They read that 23% of all books sold are hardcover. That works out to about 4.3478 books for each percent. They then multiplied that number by 77% to get the magical number of softcover books sold: 334.78 softcover books. They then add those (read: 100%) and compare that to the number of ebooks sold (180).

Hopefully, at this point, the problem is becoming clear: Are ebooks additive–that is, people are buying ebooks above beyond the numbers of hard/soft cover books they always bought? If that is the case, then So while it wouldn’t be 140% it would result in a larger pie, meaning that ebooks went from ZERO to 29% (the number they mention in the post). Not bad for eBooks. If only every new “business model” could garner 23% of a market, while not touching the rest.

But I suspect there is a shift here–people are buying either an ebook, or a paper book. Thus the “old school” ratio doesn’t hold true anymore. it’s not 23% hardcover, 77% softcover, and 29% ebooks (note: 129%). The 29% have come from somewhere–most likely eating out of some mix of hard/soft cover sales.

The authors believe (yes, believe) that there is “no evidence” that Amazon is selling more eBooks than printed books. True-they simply argued that they sold more hardcover books. But the evidence they overlooked, through flawed math, tells a very interesting, and different, story.

Sadly, one of the problems with moving the equipment around, and doing something for “the first time” is that I make “first time mistakes” and this was no different.  I tried to use the Zoom H4 recorder, but ran out of room.  Luckily we caught it early, but sadly you will hear the difference.

Let us know what you think of the podcast, though, and please, share it with your friends!

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Live From Penn State

Click Here to listen to Real Tech 52

Click here to subscribe via iTunes

Boxing Great Mayweather arrested for stealing iphone:
http://sports.espn.go.com/sports/boxing/news/story?id=5554683

WINDOWS TIP: Spread a Windows desktop image across two monitors:

• Follow these steps in to display a large image across multiple monitors:
• Right click on the background and select Personalization.
• Click on Desktop Background
• Select a background image that is at least as wide as the combined resolution of both of your monitors. For Example, I have two 19â€� monitors that have a resolution of 1280×1024. I need an image of 2560×1024 or greater so that it can be displayed across both monitors.
• Next, this is the step that most users would never even think about trying: Select the Tile picture positioning option as shown below. This is the only option that will display your background image across multiple monitors.

GOOGLE VOICE AND SKYPE

• • Like Peanut Butter and chocolate, these are two great things that are better together. Here’s what is great:
  • Get a Google Voice account and number
  • Pay $30 (for one year) to get a “skype IN” phone number
  • now add that number to your Google voice number. Now people calling your google voice can reach you on Skype (if you want them to.)
  • EVEN MORE powerful: For another $30/year you can get “skype OUT” and make unlimited calls to REAL numbers in the US and Canada. But it gets BETTER:
  • In the SKYPE application, set your caller-ID number to your Google number. Then the only number people will see if your GVoice #.
  • By doing this, you add another way to receive calls, but still only have to give out one number. Sweet, eh?
  -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
  Steve’s info:  [blog] http://theprofessornotes.com[twitter] @scmprofessor
  Tony’s info: [blog] http://getthenext.com [twitter] @tonypittman
  Chris’ info: [blog] http://targuman.org/blog [twitter] @targumanJosh’s info: [twitter] @joshfink

K-9 Email. Scan QR with camera to install

I wanted to switch email programs. I don’t like the email program that comes “stock” on the android phone and, after trying a few, decided that I really liked the K-9 email application.¹  You can read a review of it here.  It is quick, customizable, and quick.  Did I mention quick?

So once I decided that this was the “One App to rule them all” (well, rule the email apps) I saw no use having the stock email icon cluttering up the dock on the bottom of the screen (that’s the row at the bottom that presents the four most commonly used icons: phone, email, browser, and applications.)

But how do you do that?  It isn’t as obvious as “hold the icon until it selects and drag to the trash” (the way you delete other icons from the home screen-but not the applications themselves).  Luckily I found the instructions on the Android Forums website.  Here it is:

It looks like you can customize the dock on the bottom of the screen, but only the two icons in the middle. (ed.–not true) To do this, you much (sic) go into your app launcher, and make sure the View Type is on Customizable Grid, which you can change by hitting Menu > View Type > Customizable Grid. While still in the Application launcher, hit Menu > Edit to change the two middle dock icons.

Note though that it turns out (at least on my Captivate) you can swap out, or delete, the icons for all 4 items in the Dock.  Not sure I want to–but nice to know I can!

At least not until now!

Now, if you find a wiki page, or pages, that you would like to read you can now save the page, or pages, as a “book.” On the left hand side of the screen you will see “print/export” as an option. If you click on that, you can enable “book creator” and start adding pages to your “book.”

You can add pages as you find them, and then move them around to get them in the sequence that makes the most sense for you.  In addition, you can create “Chapters” that will help you, and others, understand the structure of your document and provide a sense of direction and flow.

Once you have added pages, sorted them, and added chapter headings you can then save the collection as a “PDF” book, or an Open Document format perfect for editing using the Open Office Writer tool.  I have created a mini-textbook dealing with Supply Chain Management.  I created this so that I could share this information in an accessible and structured way for my students in the Collaborative Supply Chain Management class.

In addition, you can print the collection of “pages” as a real paper book.  Wikipedia makes this possible through PediaPress with prices starting at $7.90.  They explain it this way:

PediaPress offers high-quality printed books based on wiki content and is an official partner of the Wikimedia Foundation.

Clicking the Order book from PediaPress button, will take you to the website of PediaPress. Once there you’ll get a quote for your individual printed book and see a preview how it would look like.

The price depends on the number of pages, starting with US$ 7.90 for books up to 100 pages. 10% of the gross sales price goes to the Wikimedia Foundation.

Books are perfect bound, printed in the dimensions 8.5 inch x 5.5 inch (216 mm x 140 mm) and contain a table of contents, your chapters and articles, licensing information next to an index.

More information on printed books can be found in the FAQ.

One more thing:  If you have a Wikipedia account, and if you have made at  least 10 “contributions” to the Wiki (including additions, changes, deletions or corrections) you can and share your book with others.  Very useful if you want to maintain the “digital, cloud-based” feel of the wiki but provide a guided experience for your friends, or students.

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ANDROID – Will the Google Android OS take over?

Click Here to listen to Real Tech 51

Click here to subscribe via iTunes

NEWS:Amazon has amazing prices on Cell Phones. Especially if you are wanting to get a new contract, but great prices even on renewing. A Captivate ($249 for 2 yr contract at ATT store) will sell for $40 with a new contract, or only $99 to renew (Addendum:  that’s $99 for a renewal for an individual plan.  It is $149 for a family plan phone)! Other great deals as well. Just go to wireless.amazon.com and check them out.

SECURITY ALWAYS:

• Steve was visiting his grandmother’s and found an unsecured WiFi. Not a problem–necessarily, EXCEPT the Router had NO PASSWORD.
• Tip to listeners: at least enter a password for the router (especially DLink routers that have as their default “NO” password)

PICKS of the Week:Steve: Paper.li Build your own online newspaper based on your friends on Facebook or Twitter. Works from any OS on any browser.

Chris: iPad Twitter App

Tony: eCamm Skype Recorder

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Steve’s info:  [blog] http://theprofessornotes.com[twitter] @scmprofessor

Tony’s info: [blog] http://getthenext.com [twitter] @tonypittman

Chris’ info: [blog] http://targuman.org/blog [twitter] @targumanJosh’s info: [twitter] @joshfink

Real Tech for Real People was started by Tony Pittman and me to talk about tech issues that everyone has–not just those issues that are of interest to the tech elite, or the “technorati.” Many that do podcasts lose sight of the fact that not everyone has extremely fast broadband into their homes (cable or FiOS), and those there are people that use computers but don’t want to spend time every day working and tweaking.

We try to answer the every day questions that every person has. What should you consider when buying a notebook computer? Are there differences in monitors? What are the differences between all these new phones?

And if you like our podcast, and want to show your support, please do it while giving yourself a little something as well.  We are selling coffee mugs, t-shirts, and mousepads (along with other great gifts) through CafePress.  Just visit http://cafepress.com/rtfrp and order your item today.  Show everyone that YOU are a real person!

REAL TECH FOR REAL PEOPLE: For people with tech in their lives, that don’t live for the tech

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We review the first year of Real Tech

Click here to subscribe via iTunes

NEWS
BCS NEWS: Graham Spanier to be next BCS Chair. (okay, football news…)

Google lets you make phone calls from GMAIL. Check the story at their blog.

Apple TV Rumor. More Disintermediation?

Sun Attacks Earth! (in 2012, maybe, according to scientists…) The news from India.

USAF C-5 gets “Makeover” — emerges at C-5M (from the “News from Last Year” category…)

Disney and Time Warner duke it out. Why I have issues with Cable!

ESPN 360 is great for online sports–*IF* you can get access

Commodore…. it’s BACK

APP CORNER: The Daily App Show with Adam Curry. (search for the iPhone App)

TIP of the WEEK: Google GMail LABS. Adds all sorts of cool tools, including the option to “undo send”, send and receive SMS “text” messages in chat, and a wealth of other items.

PICKS of the WEEK:
Steve: nextup.com TextAloud

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Steve’s info: [blog] http://theprofessornotes.com [twitter] @scmprofessor
Tony’s info: [blog] http://getthenext.com  [twitter] @tonypittman
Chris’ info: [blog] http://targuman.org/blog  [twitter] @targuman
Josh’s info:  [twitter] @joshfink

I was a generally happy iPhone user when I first got my 3G. I was also a very happy Google Voice user (still am) and was quick to install the Google Voice apps when they arrived. I became rather reliant on the app, since the Google Voice number is the only one I give out. Then the app disappeared. I was not happy.

So I joined the ranks of people who “jailbroke” their phones. I only jailbroke when I had a need–and for me that need was Google Voice access. I then found the use of settting up a 3G wifi hotspot using the MyWi app.

Of course, as I mentioned in my previous post, I recently switched over to the Android OS and the Samsung Captivate and again, part of the move was the tight integration with the Google Voice service. There are many other useful applications that make the Android attractive to me, but certainly the Google Voice app was a significant draw.

I am glad to see that Apple is letting Google Voice back in, but I am not sure that it will mean much any more. Will it be enough to bring people back into the fold? Will they reconsider switching to the Android, because Apple is being (potentially) more open, or has Apple lost some people–perhaps permanently?

As reporters say when they have nothing else to say…. “Only time will tell…”

I bought the iPhone 3G when it came out in 2008. Yes, I even waited in line for an Apple device.¹ I liked the phone, and unlike many others really felt no need to upgrade to the 3GS the next year, or even the iPhone 4.² I did jailbreak my phone, but I only did that after Apple unceremoniously removed the Google Voice application from the App Store.

I did generally update my phone whenever a new update came out, only waiting first to ensure the jailbreak was also available at the time. This was true with the 4.0 update as well. I wanted folders, and multitasking. Who wouldn’t? It’s what we have all been clamoring for since the first iPhone arrived. And, as promised iOS 4.0 (and later, 4.01) delivered. Sadly, for iPhone 3G owners that meant that we paid a great price–our phones no longer responded to our desires with swift efficiency. Instead our phones responded sluggishly, if at all. Answering phone calls became a race between the phone responding to my command to answer, and the caller’s patience on the other end. More often than not the caller, unaware of the skirmish between me and my phone, would hang up.

So I, like every other 3G owner who had upgraded to 4.0, upgraded when the 4.1 iOS rolled out. And yes, the snap, the responsiveness, is back. Mostly.

But “Surprise!” that is the only significant new feature announced in 4.1 to actually make it into the 3G version of 4.1.³ In fact, they removed multitasking!

I will say, I was never happier with my decision to switch to the Android OS and the Samsung Captivate Phone I made the switch days before the iOS 4.1 update. I thought it was a good chance to try to Android OS, and I have 30 days with AT&T to decide if I want to keep the phone. I will provide a review of the Captivate later, but after 1 week, I am definitely thinking this is a keeper.

So does this mean that Flickr is as bad as Facebook, running rough-shod over our rights with our own photographs?

I don’t think so, and let me explain why.  In the case of Facebook, they (the Facebook Machine) declared that all our Photos belong to Them (and us.)  Actually, the Flickr action is meant to ensure that all my photos remain my photos.  If I take a photograph, and I am willing to show it to the world, then I don’t mind you sharing it (perhaps) but only if you keep my credit attached.  People have been going around, linking to others photographs without linking back to the original, or to Flickr.

That is changed.  Now you must provide a way to link back.

To demonstrate, I have included one of my photos taken using the iPhone in the local Walmart.  As you (most likely) know, I am a Supply Chain and Operations Management professor. One of the things I teach is “service” and facility layout and design.  This photograph shows how our local Wal*Mart positioned their inventory in the floorspace prior to stocking–blocking access to much of the store (forcing you to walk around) and in one case, keeping you from purchasing their more expensive (and most likely higher margin) electric razors.

*sigh*

The Razors

One of the interesting points (and relevant to Warehouse 13)  is that males tend to throw “Rock” first.

Go visit the site, and read–it’s worth you time–especially if you use Rock-Paper-Scissors to decide who gets to shoot the bad guys first.

Recently a writer at the Atlantic Monthly has done the same thing, exploring the 4 myths around religion, and discussing the impact the “Antenna Problem” may or may not have had on the “faithful.”  It’s a good read, but I find the discussions in the comment section even more interesting.

The author of the article includes the video showing a hypothetical exchange between a tech salesman and a customer.  The customer insists that he(?) wants an iPhone.  When the salesperson presents reasons for wanting another phone, the customer insists on an iPhone.  ”It’s has the wifi.”

What intrigues me, and what has me wanting to get my brother’s take on this, isn’t so much the article, or even the video, but the comment thread that has arisen, discussing the video.  One commenter (@therantguy) sees the video as simply portraying the blind fervor and devotion demonstrated by the Apple Faithful, while another sees the video as a testament to the “truth” about Apple-that other salespeople don’t listen, and actually mislead their customers while Apple is all that is true and virtuous.  The discussion goes on for a while, bringing in others as well–and it’s a good read!

So–here’s my question for those that play in the interpretation game:  What can we learn about how we interpret documents (scripture, the Constitution, our Tax Code) by this simple exchange?

For the video, watch this (but be warned, it’s NOT SAFE FOR WORK)

For a discussion on this, listen to “”Real Tech for Real People” episode 42.

I have received numerous emails purportedly from “Verizon Wireless” but which instead is a rather malicious attempt to download many evil things onto your compu

ter.  NOTE:  The emails really are NOT coming from Verizon Wireless, but are imposters.

The email advertises new features/phones, etc, and when you click on the link it “ultimately” takes you to the Verizon Wireless site–but first routes you through several EVIL sites that drop malicious payloads into your computer  (trojans, keyloggers, password-stealers, worms, etc.)

TIP OFF? Check the actual email address that sent the email. It usually will be from some “other” site. I have seen:

• mugrealize (dot com)
• reply.rigidcomp (dot com)
• mx2.driftshy
• labelfair
• and many MANY others.

BEST DEFENSE: As always, DON’T use the links in the emails, but go directly to the site.

I discuss other ways of knowing whether an email is “legitimate” on the podcast.  Go listen to Episode 42.

As I understand it, Twitter added “lists” because people wanted a simple way of grouping the people they follow according to some sort of structure that made sense to them.  Tweetdeck had added that capability through “groups” and I had even started using that feature.  I had built groups based on my major categories of interest:  Family. Close (real) friends.  Local people. Educators.  Twitter took that idea, allowed us to create lists through them, and then also offered the option to make the lists “public” and subscribe-able.  People can see your public lists, and if they like them–follow them!

Once Twitter released that option I had actually abandoned the notion of groups and lists.  I wasn’t so sure about what I wanted to use them for anyway.  I have since gone back, adding a private list of just family and friends.

So here is what I am wondering as I peruse the 35 lists that have listed my brother, and the lists that have added me:

Are they all really that different?  And if not, are they a “waste” of time?

In my lists, I see I am listed on a number of Supply Chain Management lists.  And educator lists.  My brother’s lists are understandably predominantly discipline related, and education related.  There are a few others, but those dominate–and that’s the point.  There appears, on a curory look, to be significant overlap on these lists.

The concept of “Wisdom of the Crowds” and “Crowd-sourcing” is that crowds, when gathered together, make better decisions, and are more creative.  Potentially (and grossly oversimplified).   By building lists of people that share common interests we can see the views of others who are thinking about the same things, and get a wide range of perspectives. ²

So here are the “research questions” (or “investigative questions”) that I have:

1.  How many groups have identical or very similar themes? (Like “supply Chain Managers”)

2.  On similar lists, what is the membership overlap?

3.  How much time is spent developing these similar, and perhaps redundant, lists?

4.  Is there a better way to “share” lists, so people aren’t always reinventing the lists (and taking time to do that?)

5.  Is there some psychological need that gets filled by creating one’s own lists, rather than following someone else’s list?  Control? Ownership?

I like the grocery store analogy, but he didn’t  go where I thought he would.

Original Image from http://www.joe-anybody.com/id47.html

I thought he was going to go with the “General Store” analogy where Mr Ike (remember the Waltons?) would be behind the counter. You would go the counter with your mom’s list and he would get everything for you. No real choice in manufacturer of flour, or sugar, or even fabric. You bought what he bought, and brought.

Then we had the advent of the supermarket. You, the consumer, could now peruse from a vast array of similar products, deciding which ones of the myriad choices was right for you. Let’s take my favorite example: tomato paste. You want Heinz? Hunts? Giant store brand? Great Value? You want 4 oz? 8? 16? 32? The killer 64 oz? The assortment just of tomato based products is staggering–yet all choices we have.

Our choices remain limited by that which Walmart, or Giant, or Wegman’s chooses to stock, but (at least in the 2 former cases) they are limited by fiscal and physical constraints, and not some artistic and aesthetic focus.

If you don’t like the choices at one grocery store, you can simply go to another.

Apple is somewhere between these. They aren’t limiting us to only one choice (but oh happy day if we only could be annoyed by one fart app instead of 300!)

Apple however does limit choice. They not only control the store, but they won’t let you go to another store (without forcing you to make ‘unauthorized changes” to your device. Now, I hear the response–”you can go to another store–get a different phone!” But that’s not really the same.

In the analogy of the grocery store I have a device that I use to consume a product (my stomach, and all pertinences attached thereto). I am able to choose between a selection of products that I consume, but the device of consumption stays the same.

In the Apple model, I am forced to forgo a consumption device (one that might have a large number of appealing factors) for the “option” to consume a different assortment of products.

I don’t see why it has to be “either, or.” This Cartesian Anxiety must stop. Tell us that we are “safest” if we shop in the company store. But let us choose (perhaps through an “opt in” feature that won’t cause nightmares with firmware updates) to choose a different store. Let the consumer decide on the risks of consumption, while allowing us to have the same consumption device.

Let us “choose.”

Does Apple not have the “Stomach” for that?

So, here are my replies to his 14 requests.  Some were rather quick, others are requests for tech that would be “way cool” if we could ever get it. Without further ado, the 14 points:

You may know that I am trying to leave Facebook (and if you read my posts, you know I proposed a way to ‘roll your own’ using existing social networking sites.)  The reason I am concerned about Facebook, and wanting to leave, is that I am tired of the constant push and pull.  They push the limits on protecting privacy, we push back, they pull back… They claim they own our photos, we push, they pull back… I am not surprised, though. They don’t view their users as their customers (we aren’t–the advertisers are) but they simply view their users as the generators of content that will drive advertising sales.

The problem is that I am not sure how many really understand the several layers of privacy that could be at risk.

And here is where Moms put their kids at risk.  You know that security question “What is your mother’s maiden name?” Well… with so many women including there maiden name on facebook (“hey–my old friends can find me easier!”) it may actually put their childrens’ identity at risk.¹  I suppose this wouldn’t be a problem, so long as we make sure we don’t connect to our parents/siblings, and so forth.  But we share the information (Maiden name) and the say “oh, here are my kids’ names, too.”

Quickly, let me say I am in no way really trying to blame moms for ANYTHING here.  It’s not the fault of Moms or the kids.   I suspect all of us are in a sense “guilty” here–we don’t think about how easily people can connect the dots on this information.

Part of the problem here is that we don’t fully understand how Facebook shares information.  Apparently, even if you only share your information with your friends, if the friends have their settings open to “everyone” then your information is exposed.

I wish we could trust people. I wish we could trust Facebook.  But in this world we must be cautious.

It at first seemed a rehash of the old story.  As Google’s street mapping cars drive by the apparently record your WIFI address and map it to the GEOLOC (GPS) coordinates to enhance navigation. ¹  But then the story got, well.. interesting.

It turns out that they’ve also been collecting and storing data from those unsecured hotspots.  Anything that was being transmitted during the time those cars were driving by may have been picked up by Google’s software and stored.²

So, as if to prove to people that they should be encrypting their wifi networks, the Google car has been capturing the actual DATA being transmitted.  Now keep in mind, this isn’t just the data that is being sent out over the internet. Oh, no.  This is everything you are doing over your wifi network.

Saving homework to a network drive?

GOT IT.

Moving pictures or music from one computer to another?

GOT IT.

Updating your business’ financial spreadsheets on the network drive?

GOT IT.

But we shouldn’t worry, because Google doesn’t want to do evil, and so they are doing everything they need to do.  They will make adjustments to their software to stop “eavesdropping” on your digital “in home” conversations.  And then, at the end of the article, they tell us this:

Google says it will work with local authorities to show what information was collected and make sure it is disposed of properly.

Yup–have no fear.  Whatever information they have “accidentally” collected will be given to the local authorities to dispose of “properly.”

Honestly, I am more concerned about my financials getting handed around than I am anything else, but does this strike anyone else as… well…. odd?  And remember, you don’t have to be doing something “illegal” to have information that could be embarrassing or personally destructive if  released.  ^{3   4}

Usually the local authorities need a warrant to tap into your phone and data lines.  They certainly need a warrant before they can go into your homes. (Just ask Jason Chen) but what happens if someone “just happens to give them information?”  Can that information be used?  I mean, it essentially has the same weight as “we received a tip from a citizen that…”

Should we be worried?  What are your thoughts?  Big Brother, or a “Tempest in a Teapot?” ⁵

What to do?

How about this–build your own community!  The tools are already here–we just need to come up with a coordinated way to share.

Let’s start with Twitter as the “hub.”  You can use Twitter to keep in touch, and follow your friends.  Of course, it is important to note that your public tweets are just that.  PUBLIC.¹  So what to do?  First, watch what you say (always good advice.)  Second, if you want to add an extra layer of privacy just create a “Blocked” account, and only allow your followers to see what you post. So you can share with your friends what you are doing, and they can share with you.  And let’s not forget the direct, one-on-one messages you can share, or “DMs.”

But that’s just the start.  Do you like sharing your photographs?  Flickr is a much better site for photo storage and sharing anyway. It’s the purpose of Flickr. And in Flickr you can create or join photo groups that are focused on things that interest you, ranging from entertainment groups you might have been in, to people sharing the same interests in photographic subjects or cameras.  In addition, you can make your photos public and visible to everyone, or just to friends, or for family.  You can control the access to your photographs and even control who can download the image or reuse it. On top of all of that, you can even choose to make your photo available to photo services to use and pay you for the use! If you haven’t checked out Flickr, you really should.

And when you add a photo to flickr, and want the world to know about it–tell them on Twitter!

Now maybe you want to share videos.  There are many sites for doing that, as well.  Certainly YouTube is the most well known but Vimeo is making a strong showing as well.  Again, you can share your videos publicly, or share only with friends.  (And Flickr also now supports limited videos, as well!)

This is just the tip of the iceberg.  These three sites (Twitter, Flickr, and YouTube) really address the majority of how people use Facebook–to connect, share conversation, share photos, and share videos.  Why turn over control to Facebook, when you can “roll your own?”

So let us know–how else do you use Facebook, and what other community tools do YOU know that could help wean ourselves off Facebook?

And let’s start with Twitter.  You can find me there as @scmprofessor

Privacy.  PRIVACY.  The RIGHT to PRIVACY.  Do you believe we should have a right to privacy?  Should we expect that our government will allow us to live our lives without surveillance, free from the need to check, to constantly look over our shoulders to see who from the government is watching?

As always the world is full of events occupying our time and driving the news.  And, as is usually the case, each story is presented in isolation.  Rarely does anyone discuss the connectedness of the stories or their implications.  Often, that means little, but occasionally the disconnectedness points to the dissonance in government when agencies pursue their agendas.  Once in a while the opportunity arises from this to view the conflict in “generalizable principles” that drive our government’s behavior.

Yesterday President Obama made a rare selection for the Supreme Court choosing someone who has not sat on the bench. ¹  In the past few decades concomitant with the selection of a nominee we have heard the hue and cry from both sides of the abortion debate.  So far there has been little discussion on this issue. ²   The Washington Post today suggests today that part of the silence is due to the economic issues of the past few years, but hints that the lack of a record on the part of Elena Kagan will cause many to dig back through what record there is.  This in itself could be cause for silence.

As the Post points out the issue of concern to many is her views on the “right to privacy.”  Interestingly, this is the “right” that has been cited as the underpinnings of a woman’s right to choose.  Also, interestingly, opponents point out the glaring absence of the “right” to privacy in the constitution. ³

The Washington Post may be correct–this may well be the sleeper issue of the summer. ⁴

So the right to privacy has been a major underpinning of the “pro-choice” movement.  And so far the government has held that there is a “right to privacy.” The question now is–is that a special right, or a general right?  That is, does this “right to privacy exist only for the arguments surrounding and defending abortion, or is it a fundamental right that is applied to everyone in every walk of life, every day?

Think long and hard about this.  What is the heart of the debate concerning immigration in Arizona?  Is it really racism? Or is it about the right to live a private life, without the intrusion of the government into your private life without cause?  After removing the words “Racism” and “racist” from the discussion, the most vocal arguments so far against the new immigration law in Arizona have centered around the stopping of individuals that law enforcement might believe are here illegally based solely on “their perceived ethnic origin.” So the question really is one of privacy.

Now let’s take that next step–the government actually implying that they are using the tools of high-tech espionage to track down citizens–not for terrorism, or murder, or violent crimes, but for failing to pay $4000 in taxes. ⁵  (See the video below)

Of course, we all know that the state of Pennsylvania doesn’t actually use satellite surveillance and listening devices, and gps tracking to monitor their citizens.⁶  It’s just a commercial. It’s not meant to REALLY intimidate anyone.  It’s just meant to be cute.

Right?  RIGHT?

One author, however, worries that if we view the iPad as the path that Apple would rise up and exert censorship over the content, giving us the Jobs view of the world (much as many criticize Disney for giving us Walt’s sanitized view of how the world is.)  I could see  Apple doing that not only to sanitize content, but also to further whatever political agendas they may have given their apparent arbitrary, capricious and vindictive approaches to what is and isn’t approved.  (political in this sense in the larger meaning, not simply political as in government affairs.)

I mentioned this is an email, and in reply, I was told that we shouldn’t worry about that.  That Apple has demonstrated a willingness to not interfere in educational issues as shown through iTunesU and that Apple would probably never get enough market share for that to happen.

Perhaps.  But that led me to ponder further what really would it take to get digital texts  (or as my brother calls them “educational applications” to move from obscurity to ubiquity–and will proprietary get in the way?

First I wanted to address the interesting  notion that  iTunesU is the model of an Open Apple.  That might be true, but the textbook/educational applications that we are seeing discussed are positioned to be sold through the AppStore model, and  the App Store is a model of a closed Apple.  At times, a VERY closed Apple.   Recently we have seeen Apple exerting control not only on content but the tools to be used in developing that content.But let’s set aside for a moment the problems of if Apple were to control the market, and look at what it would take to get there.
Perhaps my correspondent is correct that Apple cannot garner enough market share to make them (and their iPad) a viable contender and competitor in the textbook space, but then we are left wondering:

• If Apple doesn’t control a significant share of the textbook “space” then what are the options for students?
• What incentive will students have to drop $500+ on a device that only a small fraction of faculty will have as the platform for their texts/instructional materials?

Will Apple work towards open standards so that the books/media will be able to be hosted on a wide range of platforms, or will Apple insist on a proprietary standard, working towards exclusivity for the instructional material they “host” on their platform.  This isn’t simply a red herring tossed out to direct attention from some “Greater Good.”  The fact is that right now students are able to choose from a variety of sources to purchase their texts (and thus a wide range of service/price combinations) and even between new and used books.  Faculty can choose between various textbook publishers/providers, which allows the professor to not only choose the best content, but the best value package for the students.

All that can disappear if one source controls the access to the media, and if there exist competing exclusive and proprietary sources for access to media, then students will be required to purchase not one, but several expensive readers/devices depending on the choices of the faculty member.  Or, alternatively the faculty will be hamstrung, “encouraged” by students or administration to only focus on those source-materials available and the dominant device.

So here we go–what is the decision making process that leads a faculty member to assign a “multi-media resource” as the course “text” rather than a regular textbook? What do you when the students are told that for my ONE class the book is no longer that big expense at $100-200 but rather the iPad becomes the big expense–costing 2-5 times that amount. AND there is no guarantee that any other faculty members will commit to a similar path? And of course the publishers don’t want to reduce the price of the “text” below 50% of the current price AND don’t want to make the “book” available permanently. And don’t forget, most technology has a life of 2-3 years when used regularly. Heavy use, along with ever increasing complexity of the applications/software, may well shorten the lifespan of the product that students must purchase, shifting them from a 1 time outlay to 2, or 3 times in the span of a college career–assuming of course that enough faculty adopt these “books” to make it worth their while.

At a time when the pressures from students AND the federal government is to lower the costs of education (and specifically texts) what professor wants to be the one to step up and insist that students get a high priced device that is designed for obsolescence?

So we are faced with an interesting challenge.  At a time when technology is holding out such promise we find at least one company who has the technical ability to break down the cost walls while simultaneously catapulting the technology of learning well beyond anything we have experienced.  And we find that the same company is tighting the grips on their “ecosystem” arguing that they can control their own little corner of the world.

This is one of those pivotal moments–we can see proprietary walls go up, and little gardens of creative learning spread slowly.  Or we can encourage open architectures that will enable creativity and learning to spread quickly, and widely.

Ubiquity? Or Proprietary? Which way do you think things will go?

That said I have had my issues with the device.  In this post I want to focus on two:  the initial syncing to iTunes for Windows users, and the on-screen keyboard.

I had some initial problems getting it synced with my Windows 7 machine, which i initially attributed to my own unique configuration, but have since heard many others have had similar problems.  Specifically iTunes 9.1 won’t “see” the iPad (and in my case stopped seeing the iphone as well.) The solution was simple if time consuming–completely delete out the installation of iTunes and all things Apple.

I will say though that, by not being able to connect to the computer at first, i found the iPad to be a real joy to use as a stand alone device.  I was able to get applications quite easily, and watch streaming video.  If it weren’t for my insane desire to actually listen to and watch my already purchased media I would have had no desire to connect.

That does beg the question though–why must we actually continue to connect our devices with the computers through cables? This device is the epitome of mobility allowing full connectivity through wifi and soon through 3G cell networks.  Cant Apple find a way to sync the ipad to the computers wirelessly?  (HINT:  Microsoft already does that with the ZUNE)

Now the next criticism is the keyboard.  First let me say that I generally enjoy typing on the screen keyboard.  I am using it now in fact.  But some of the key placements are a bit awkward considering the fact that I am starting to use it like a “normal” keyboard.  I expect keys to be in certain places, and when they require two or three extra keystrokes to use (yes apostrophe i am talking to you!) i find it to to be a hindrance.  But what is worse given that I am not a professional typist, is the lack of arrow keys.  When i type (er, mistype) i want to be able to go back and edit the word without trying to place the cursor with my fingertip.  Perhaps others are more dextrous than I, but I have a heck of a time getting it “exactly” right, forcing me to make more corrections than i had intended, and again hindering the work flow.

In your reading of this you may have come across another annoying “feature.” For some reason the smart typing system insists on a lower case I more often than not.  Others have noticed this as well, and my brother even brought it up in conversation.   A seemingly trivial annoyance, but one that requires an inordinate amount of proof-reading when they could have just left things alone.

Admittedly I could go and purchase either the keyboard Dock or the Bluetooth keyboard but honestly, I think that defeats the purpose of the highly portable and lightweight device.

So there you have it.  A couple of my “nits” that I am going to pick about the iPad.

Now–back to watching Castle on the ABC app!

Today’s soldier, airman and sailor (fine, and marine) carries around not only their weapon and ammunition, but provisions, body armor and all sorts of other sundries not dreamed of in past wars.  Much is designed to ensure both success and survivability on the battlefield.  But like soldiers through the ages, they like to have diversions and distractions through reading material during the “down” times.

Enter the eReader and digital books.  The beauty of these devices is they can hold hundreds of books at weight that at most tips the scale at 1.5 pounds.  This is quite attractive for the warfighter already hauling tens of pounds of gear.

An organization has formed to provide eReaders/eBooks to troops.  Their vision is:

to build the nation’s leading non-profit organization dedicated to providing e-books and e-book technology to military personnel who are deployed overseas defending our country.

and by doing this they hope to support the men and women who serve our country, putting their lives on the line daily.

I have used this then to spurred some discussion on Twitter about the survivability of these devices in the field.  Which would hold up better, an iPad or a Kindle?

Some of the considerations have included:

• Susceptibility of the screen to cracking/breaking
• Dust/Sand damage
• Battery life
• Ability to purchase/install books

One person on Twitter, @nutzareus, has commented on his experience in the field and noted that regardless what you use you must use an OtterBox to protect your device.  He commented that he used the OtterBox Defender Case for iPhone 3G, 3GS when he was in the field.

Other contributors to the discussion include:

@dpowensj, @obsidianspider, @iPeat

So what other things should be considered?  What do YOU recommend for our soldiers?  Please, share your thoughts.

Google has now made storytelling through searches available for the masses!  I decided to throw together a VERY quick story, about the marriage of Apple, Best Buy and the iPad.  There is very little control over the story, in that it only shows search results, so through trial and error you may be able to come up with the PERFECT story.

In fact, some have done AMAZING work (go see the examples for the Winter Games for instance).  Try it.  Let me know what YOU like.

It is priced at $50, which is a bit pricey to start, and became an unacceptable price for me when I started using the case at home.

The one thing–the ONE thing it doesn’t do is actually make the connection to the dock connector when placed in the “easel style dock” sold by Apple.  The silicon is thin enough that the iPad will settle comfortably and securely onto the dock but will not actually settle in far enough to make a connection.

That for me is a deal breaker.  It’s going BACK to Best Buy!

That said, if you didn’t get the Apple Dock and/or if you don’t mind $50 as a price, then by all means get it.  But remember, the Apple portfolio case is $10 cheaper.

So today I trundled over to the app store and decided to download the free WordPress app. It is Spartan in design in that it provides a simple interface for entering text and no real “glitz” with the interface. that said it does have an option to add images, and even provides a drop down menu for selecting categories.

When adding images I lose the ability to place the image where I want it to specifically go, but I can at least get the image in the blog, and provide the information and content i want a he reader to get–I can always edit/redesign later.

Enough of this-you should see it to believe it.

In my homage to all things meta, here is this blog entry added as an image:

NOTE:  Comment  after posting from iPad.  I am leaving everything above exactly as it posted.  As you can see the image posted in portrait mode, even though the iPad knew that I was in landscape mode when I took the snap.  Also there was no easy way to resize the image.  I have noticed that, after posting, I can go in and edit directly the HTML code that is embedded to display the image.

I am willing to accept that these are failures on my part.  I don’t know the inner workings of the iPad yet, or the WordPress app, but my “first touch” experience says that this app adds some quite useful features, but is still lacking some of the basics that would make it far more useful when “on the run.”

Once you download the app, you can see a display showing the planets and the future stages of the moon over the next few days.  In that first screen you can learn when the Sun will rise and set, how long our day will be that day, and when each planet will rise and set.

(click for larger image)

You can go past that to a full sky mode that not only shows you the stars but can overlay constellations and the horizon but even more, as you turn, it turns, showing you what is in front of you as you turn, using e built in compass. Heck, I didn’t realize that the iPad even had a compass in it!

Check. Out the link. I will try to add screen captures later.

(Click for larger image)

blog post written completely on iPad — and not easily.  More on that later.

First out of the gate is Camera for iPad.  We had talked in Episode 31 (recorded last night) about the lack of a camera for the iPad.  Not an “order loser” (at least not for 300,000+ new owners) but certainly something we would have liked to have seen.  It turns out there are ways around it.  The first approach is to tie your iPad to your iPhone.  Admittedly this only works if you have an iPhone, but if you do, the app “Camera for iPad” will link your iPad to your iPhone via the bluetooth connection and allow you to capture pictures using the iPhone.  This is a very interesting app (and for 99 cents total, installed on both devices, affordable) and I am looking forward to seeing what other innovative  ways people will link their iPhone and other bluetooth enabled devices to their iPad.

(Click for larger image)

NOTE:  Please, after reading through here, share your thoughts to my question that I ask at the end of the post. I crave your inputs and your ideas on this topic of great significance to students, and parents, who buy textbooks)

Underlying my view on digital textbooks is the idea that publishing through a digital medium removes the costs of production, shipping, and other supply chain costs, and thus could significantly reduce the costs of the  texts, resulting in the possibility of a substantial reduction in price to the students.  In addition, I argue that by making the textbooks very reasonably priced students would be more likely to simply “buy new” rather than seek out ways to hack the protections and “steal” books.

Unfortunately it seems the publishers are seeking to do everything they can to dissuade students from making the shift to digital books while appearing to be progressive.

Let me explain:

I have a textbook that I use for my Introduction to Supply Chain and Production Operations course.  The text is Operations Management (10th Edition) by Jay Heizer and Barry Render.  According to Amazon, the text lists new for $198.67 but is available through Amazon for 162.98.  Amazon points out that this is a savings of 18%.  ²

So what would you expect the price to be for a digital version?  $30? $50?  $75?

Try $99.35 — and this isn’t a copy you OWN!  You are essentially leasing it (subscribing to it) for 6 months!

Don’t believe me?  Visit the link, and also check the graphic below (click to see larger image.)

This is just one example of the pricing schema.

So let me ask you this:

• Do you believe a 50% discount off the list price is enough to get you to “purchase” a digital 6 month subscription rather than purchase the text?
• What are your thoughts on the subscription idea versus owning an actual copy of the text?
• What would it take to move YOU to a digital textbook?

And what if that resource is required?

I had the privilege to speak with a representative from a textbook publisher about their new technological advance, designed to help students learn better, and even more, help faculty by automating the grading and evaluation process.  At first blush I was convinced we had a win-win here. Students would be able to learn at their own pace, seeking out knowledge to help them with their problems while simultaneously lifting some of the administrative burden that faculty like least–the grading of homework.  ¹  In the presentation, I was shown how students could not only work through their homework problems, but also click a link to take them directly to the section of the textbook that discusses the approaches needed to solve the homework problem.

While all these solutions are browser based and would work on a wide range of netbook, notebook and desktop computers (Mac, Windows and presumably LINUX based) I was beginning to see just how a digital device such as the Apple iPad could be perfect for such a solution.  The iPad could easily contain all the textbooks a student would have in a semester, could then also assist in the completion not only of the homework but could be instrumental in integrating their understanding of the material with their communications with their classmates and their professor and, given the right writing tools, could be the hub for their homework, email and writing assignments.

Then my thoughts came to a screeching halt when the representative started to talk about prices.

*SIGH*

Access to the homework tool (included in the purchase of a NEW textbook) would cost students $10 if they chose to instead by a book used.  Of course, that would only give them access to the homework assignments.  There was an additional fee ($30 I believe) if they wanted to have the “PLUS” features, including the hyperlinking to the appropriate section of the text.  Of course students could simply purchase the complete digital version, integrating the textbook with the online supplemental materials, and read the books on their computer ²

As I listened, I started hearing the dollar signs tally up quite quickly–and all because of decisions I would make concerning the structure of my class.  Would I require students to complete their homework online?  Would I choose to be considerate of their purse-strings and instead make the online homework an option–requiring me as a faculty member to not only NOT see a time savings but now instead have to manage two separate streams of assignment turn-ins, along with separate grading schema as well?

And what about the students who feel they learn best when they can sit, with a pencil and piece of paper, textbook open before them and their trusty calculator by their side, plugging and chugging their way through to the solutions each problem challenging, then leading to the epiphany they so richly enjoy?

So now I sit here, faced with the interesting challenge–Do I push forward into the technology of pedagogy, and require students to spend more money for digital learning, or do I resist, ironically clinging to paper texts with the twisted ideal of helping students more frugally achieve their learning objective?  Or do I try to chart a course, mandating neither, and potentially creating chaos in the wake? ³

How do we know if it is working?

I have had a simple measure:  Do some (or even any) students use the tools, and when they use them do they feel that they are grasping the material better?

My thought has been that numbers don’t matter as much as outcomes for individuals and if some students find value then these approaches are worth continuing.

What are your thoughts?  Must we have numbers to be considered successful?

Once this hard fought and necessary battle was won, the HOA celebrated their victory, and opened up a Yahoo Group to the community to enhance communications.  Alas, this seems to have brought out not a spirit of friendship and community but one of sniping and backbiting.

Everyone has their own little petty concerns that bother them.  Of course, what seems to bother them the most are what their neighbors are doing with their own property, or with their cars in front of their property.  And of course, all arguments er discussions are brought up with the “greater good” at heart, the greater good being, of course “Property Values.”

Sounds fair, right?

Try this one.  The first comment (and I mean the very first comment) was that, now that the roads have been paved and it is easier to get into your driveway, we need to mandate that everyone parks in the drive and ban parking on the streets in front of their own home.  Oh, and if you have too many cars for the driveway–you need to park in your garage.

The battles have continued, over swimming pools, RVs, pets, fences, and all the various other issues that can annoy neighbors.  But despite all of this, one things remains constant:  no one wants to participate in a Democracy.  They want things to simply be “their way.”

As I mentioned I am renting, so I honestly have “no dog in the hunt.”  I couldn’t care less how things are for the long term.  I just enjoy watching this little corner of America play itself out.  So I have until now just stayed out of the discussions, and watched–and laughed.

This weekend after a rather lengthy back and forth discussion with someone having violated a “24 hour RV parking rule” by 48 hours, I finally offered up my suggestion.  The argument seemed to focus on two things.  First, one group was adamant that “these are the rules” and it doesn’t matter if you like these rules are not, rules are rules and must be followed.  The other group (to summarize) essentially argued that some of these rules are silly and the application of fines and punishments for silly rules is beyond silly.

So I stepped in and suggested that, here in America, it might be a good idea to put the various rules up for a referendum.  Let the community decide as a whole, through a vote, which rules are important and which are worth modifying or discarding.  Then, as we always do in America, live with the will of the people until the next opportunity to change the rules presents itself. {2.  The current rules were simply “handed down” as an edict from the builder when he created the community (remember the builder? Bankrupt and all…) The various members did agree to the rules when they moved in, but are these rules to remain etched in stone for all eternity? ]

Seems simple.  But nooooooo… You can’t change the rules.  The rules are the rules.  And of course, my FAVORITE argument was this one:

“The only people who would want to change the rules are the people who want to break them in the first place.  We shouldn’t give these lawless people a voice!”

SERIOUSLY?  Yes… seriously.  That was the response.  Um. Duh.  People who repeal laws usually do so to allow a behavior that had previously been made illegal.  Remember Prohibition anyone?

I could go on, recounting story after story–the stories are numerous and honestly, I am saving every one of them, hoping some day to turn this dysfunctional microcosm of America into some sort of Erma Bombeck style book.

In the meantime, I would LOVE to hear from each of you–do YOU have any HOA stories you can share?  Horror, humor or happy?

I have found that, on days when I am checking emails with greater frequency, listening to music and podcasts, and tweeting, my battery lasts about 6 hours.  The Mophie has come in quite handy.  If you want to actually USE your phone, then this is a must-have device.

The Mophie makes most buttons and connectors on the iPhone readily accessible. I can insert headsets, and press the power buttonsand the volume rocker quite easily.  On the other hand the “ringer/vibrate” switch is a little more difficult to operate (at least for me, since I don’t have fingernails to speak of…)  The other drawback is the connector (see below for more information on that).

They designers gave some serious thought to the use as both a phone and music player designing audio channels that direct your voice to the microphone and also channel the music out through the device with no limitations on volume or sound quality.

That said, the Mophie does have its drawbacks, specifically the connector.  The Mophie does not use the standard iPhone/iPod docking connector but rather uses a micro-USB connector (the same one used in the Amazon Kindle DX and Kindle 2).  The Mophie comes with a USB cable, so that you can easily plug the Mophie (and iPhone) into your computer, and your computer will recognize the iPhone and connect through to your iTunes application and any other applications you use with your iPhone.  The only real difficulty comes when you want to use other devices with your iPhone specifically designed with the Dock connector.  My simple solution–take the phone out of the Mophie.  That is what I do any time I want to listen to podcasts through my car soundsystem.  ¹

Pros:

• Doubles the battery life of the iPhone
• Protects the iPhone from accidental drops and tumbles
• 4 LEDs on the back indicate charge levels (with test button)
• No real significant weight/balance change
• Available in several colors

Cons:

• The connector is not the “standard” pass through for the iPhone Dock
• If you wish to use your iPhone with a “standard” device you must remove the phone from the Mophie
• Does increase the weight a bit
• Doubles the thickness of the phone

I have enjoyed the Mophie and the additional protection and power that it provides.  I only have to switch to battery from the Mophie occasionally, but when it was nice to know that I had that extra reserve ready to go when I needed it.

One final note:  my sister-in-law saw mine, liked it, and bought one for herself in red.  I asked her what she thinks and she too loves the extended battery life that she is experiencing.

I have mentioned many of these as my “picks of the week” over at our Real Tech for Real People podcast, so go visit the site, and listen to the weekly podcast to not only find out what we pick, but why!  My partners, Tony Pittman and Josh Finklestein always have great choices as well, and our guests do too!

My first pick today is one my eldest daughter gave me for Christmas.  I wanted an adapter that would let me use SD memory cards in my cameras that use “Compact Flash” cards.  The predominant reason is the increasing scarcity of CF cards and the lower price point and near ubiquity of the SD cards.  She found for me the SD-CF II : SD to CF Type II Adapter (Supports SDHC) by Semco.

This card is relatively inexpensive, and that is perhaps its biggest draw. For only $15 you can have a quick and easy way to make use of the readily available SD cards.   I have put it through its paces in the past few months and here is what I have found:

Pros:

• Inexpensive.  Yup, it’s downright cheap.
• Has worked in every camera I have used it in, which is my Sony Digital Alpha 100, my Canon Digital Rebel, and my Canon Digital Rebel Xt
• Has worked in every card reader I have used on my computers

Cons:

• Slow.  It’s not PAINFULLY slow, but it is not as fast as the SD memory I put in it, and frankly isn’t as fast as my existing CF cards (middle-of-the-road speed, for value)

So there you have it.  If you want to be able to capture every day pictures then this card is more than capable and opens up opportunities for you to take advantage of sales on SD cards that might not be available for CF Cards.  On the other hand if you have to shoot fast, and want very quick write speeds to “keep up with the action” at events like football or swimming, then you will want a dedicated higher end CF Card.

All in all, a solid value, and I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

=====

Books are wonderful things. Millenia ago, our predecessors shared their histories, and explained the world around them, through an oral tradition, passing stories down from one generation to another. Over time, these stories were written down, essentially “locking” the stories down on paper. Ever since, books have been a way to disseminate information for thousands of years, and with the advent of the printing press, to do so quickly, and broadly. We can partake in the imaginations of a Tolkien, a Lewis, a Shakespeare, or a Plato. We can read the political thoughts of Aristotle, Marx, and Obama, or the theological insights of Paul, Aquinas and Spong. We can even allow our minds to drift as we read romance novels through the ages, or the horror stories from Beowolf, to Frankenstein, to any Stephen King novel. Each book brings new thoughts, new images, and new imaginings.

In the 21st century we have even more ways to disseminate, and enjoy, the works and thoughts of others. Just as the printing press made paper books available to the masses, we have digital ebooks to take dozens of books with us, to read anywhere. We now also have stepped beyond “books on tape” to truly digital audio books that, when combined with personal media players such as the iPod, enable even those who cannot read to enjoy the panoply of thoughts.

If the printing press was the first revolution, sharing ideas with the literate masses, it was limited in the very requirement for literacy. In order to read, one must be able to read. Thus is its limitation it provided the impetus for literacy as more people sought to embrace the ideas made possible through literature.

This latest revolution both extends and hinders the reach of literature. Certainly, if one defines ‘educated’ and ‘literate’ as being exposed to ideas, then we can see how a more informed, and thus more literate, populace will result from such broad access to reading. And through the efforts of Project Gutenberg many of the classics through the ages are now available to the masses. People with internet access can now enjoy the thoughts of the ages, wherever they can reach the internet. And with the One Laptop per Child initiative, children in developing nations can be exposed to ideas global in scope, and timeless as the ages. And finally, whether one can actually read, or not, the proliferation and easy transportability of digital audio files has opened literature to everyone.

Alas, this great awakening may yet be returned to slumber. In the great confluence of enlightened self-interest we find that several challenges remain for making this the greatest literate population ever.

First, it is possible that, when provided with ample reasons to not learn to read, the population reverts once again to an “oral” tradition. Admittedly this is a different oral tradition. In this “new” tradition, the stories are told, and frozen, and remain accessible to those that can’t read. But in this “new” oral tradition the strengths of the oral tradition, the committing the stories to personal memory, embedding them deep in the social soul, is replaced by committing them to digital memory. The stories are retold, but not necessarily embraced. And perhaps worse, these stories then are so easily accessible as to render the impetus to read almost impotent. ¹

The second great challenge is the rush to protect the “digital rights.” Cory Doctorow, in a This Week in Tech podcast, (42 minutes, 50 seconds in) points out that Audible books, and other electronic book distributors, will not allow for the distribution of digital rights free books. Cory Doctorow actually insisted that his books be distributed without DRM, and audible refused.

So why is this the “second great challenge?” Perhaps the best way to explain the impact of DRM is to ask this set of questions: Have you ever given away a book? Loaned a book? Borrowed one from the library? The way digital rights are currently implemented, you cannot loan out a book that you have already read. You can’t say, as so many of us have, “this is a great book–I will give it to you when I am done.” In fact, the terms of service are such for the Kindle that you can’t sell, it loan it or give it away! If we are to experience the benefits of this greatest age of literacy, we need to allow for information to be shared. I honestly understand the concept of intellectual property (what professor doesn’t?) but I also understand that once we share an idea (and perhaps, get paid for it) the idea not only can enter the mainstream, we should hope that it does!

¹ In fact, this is one area in which I struggle with podcasting for courses. If I make my lectures, notes and answers available as audio podcasts have I disconnected the students even further from the richness that is “the text?”

That said, I am willing to go that route, with support from our listeners and my readers.

If you want to support me in getting an iPad, just click here, and make a donation to “Help Steve get an iPad”

Heck if you just like what you read, are pleased that I am here sharing my thoughts, or you enjoyed the video that posted from the swim team (or the other videos here and at http://thefathersonchats.com) then please, feel free to donate.

2 dollars, 4 dollars. 10 dollars.  Anything is gratefully accepted.

Thanks.

This time it was for Matthew’s Swim Team.  I had fun with this one, including playing with some 3D effects, but most importantly it was a chance for me to help the kids highlight the fun and excitement that was their Swim Season.

I would like to thank Mike Singletary for giving us the GREAT “Formula” quote, and the good folks Crackpot and Buzzkill at The No Agenda Show for the mix of the Formula quote.  It’s a great way to start a slide show–especially if we watch it “In the Morning.”

For the sound track I used:
Ladies and Gentlemen by Saliva

There’s A Party (Feat. George Clinton & Chali 2na) by N.A.S.A.

Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines by US Air Force Band and Singing Sergeants

Just A Friend by Biz Markie

Lord, Guard and Guide (The U.S. Air Force Hymn) by US Air Force Band and Singing Sergeants

Nota Bene:

There are two hidden audio jewels.  At the end of the first song, there is a faint voice over, with a certain person saying “I was told that, that suit is illegal.”  And then, before “Just a Friend” the audio is, in classic “no one likes to be a video star” mode being told “Brady, Go Away.”

So now we face  the BIG PROBLEM.

By shifting to a policy where everyone is now to be insured, we open the floodgates of demand (okay, a bit much. But we certainly will allow millions more in.) Demand for services will increase. So it would make sense that prices would increase to balance out the demand (remember Econ 101, all else equal, in the near term an increase in demand will result in an increase in price. In the long term it should result in an increase in supply, as the market responds to the increased demand for the product).

Will we see prices increase? Not for the consumer–they are capped at the Co-pay. And now we are seeing pressures to not raise prices from the supply side (and the insurance companies will be SHOT if they raise rates significantly).

So what happens now? If prices cannot go up, then demand will remain (unrealisticly) high. Unrealistic in that demand is acting free of the market place.

With demand high, and the inability to increase prices we will see no real “benefit” to more providers entering the marketplace.

More to the point, even if we could see more providers enter the market there are significant barriers to entry. Consider the medical field:

1. Doctors must go through extensive training, and then licensing (not to mention the fact that they never really get it right–so must keep “practicing”)

2. medicines must be approved after rigorous testing, and their labs must be approved, and so forth.

3. Various other licensing and authorizing are in place for therapists, assistants, nurses, and the like.

Supply cannot respond quickly, and with a rising demand and supply unable to keep up, and with no pricing mechanism to regulate the demand we will face:

Shortages of service resulting in long waiting lines/delays.

And how do you deal with shortages? Since the market forces are not allowed to work, we are left with the government stepping in, once again, to fix the mess of it’s own making. They will have to “ration” care.

Sorry–it’s a fact. In every nation that has shifted to “socialized” they have faced shortages, lines and rationing.

It’s not something we can “do better.”

It’s economics.

The whole initiative is predicated on a few arguments:

1. Costs (prices) are too high.
2. Insurance companies are “making too much money”
3. Millions of people don’t have access to care
4. The Health Care people are receiving is poor (oh, wait, it’s not about the actual care…)

So let’s tackle this. The basic problem now comes down to a discussion of supply and demand/economics.

As the system currently works we have two sets of perverse incentives fighting against the consumer (and one of these incentives takes place with the willing, yet unknowing, assistance of the patient)

First, the perverse incentives of the patient:

Currently, the “cost of entry” into the health care system is high (monthly “Insurance” rates) but thanks to low, or no, co-pays, the marginal costs of most health care transactions are quite low.

Given the low costs incurred per visit, and the high “sunk” costs incurred to enter the system, the insureds (patients) who HAVE insurance are incented to go to the doctors more frequently, and to go ahead and get the prescriptions (Hey, it’s only $3 copay at Wal*Mart!)

Of course, this is a mirage. The actual costs of each visit and each prescription are borne by the insurance companies, which then have to recover their costs through increased premiums, which of course has everyone screaming that the insurance companies are “gouging” the customers.

On the other hand, we have a set of pricing incentives that also conspire against the consumer. The ‘care providers” are aware that the patient/customer doesn’t see the actual costs–they only pay the co-pay. So given this we have a series of perversions that are at play:

1. Doctors are more able to prescribe tests/medicines, and the like, since they will receive little if any push-back from the patients because of costs. More services with a low marginal cost to the consumer/patient, but a higher total cost, paid by the insurance companies.
2. Insurance companies work to lower their costs by negotiating to pay health care providers a fraction (some value less than 1) of the billable rate. Thus the providers are incented to increase their prices the maintain their revenue stream. This increases the costs once again.

So these two twists to the problem work once again to force the insurance companies to have to raise the rates (really on everyone) to cover the payments they are having to make.

Now–as consumers, we see that we are paying a high “sunk cost” as a monthly fee and, rather than view this as traditional insurance (where I am betting against myself) the consumer wants to try to get at least that benefit back out of the “system” (and is encouraged to do so, by “low co-pays”)

Sadly, the whole mess was brought on by our desire to protect everyone and provide some level planning to health care. The “free market” actually would provide better incentives here, placing limits/governors not only on how much people are willing to spend on services, but the prices that people would have to pay. If service providers want to stay in business then they would be forced to price competitively based on the market, and the market would be making the decisions based on the consumers. As it stands now, with the “same co-pay regardless” the consumer has no indication of value, and the market cannot respond. Viagra is as valued as Interferon and as Motrin.

What to do when everything costs the same?

I am not alone in my expectation that the Health Care (insurance) reform will not improve Health Care (it won’t make bad doctors good ones, for instance) and it won’t improve access since lower prices have that pesky effect of increasing demand–in a field where the barriers to entry for suppliers are significant.

I will say this:  Welcome to the new “Grand Experiment.”  If it succeeds, then by all means celebrate (but could we get a good solid definition of success on which we can all agree?)  But (and this is significant) if it fails, how many will have died as part of the experiment, and will we ever be able to recover?

One final note:  As researchers we have to seek, and get, informed consent from human subjects before we can experiment on them.  Did you get the forms?

I am not writing this as a “hater” or critic of the iPad.  I just would love to see if the demand spiked on the first day and dropped precipitously, or whether the demand over the 21 days prior to shipping stayed relatively constant, or even ramped up as we approached the 3rd of April.

Here’s what I wonder:  people who are early adopters, and the first to get in line and wait for days for a new product, are by all anecdotal evidence I have heard the ones who pre-order, and pre-ordered on the first day they could.  And in the case of my brother, ordered it as soon as the Apple Store made it available.

If my supposition is true, then the demand for pre-ordered items would have been heavily front-loaded.  Conversely,  I would find it quite interesting if demand for the iPad through pre-ordering had any sort of ramping to the demand pattern.  If the demand was increasing, then the big question of the day would be:  Why?

The next question is are the people who would normally stand in line to get the next “really cool product” the same who would want to pre-order right away (and thus reduce or eliminate lines at the stores) or is the psychology of waiting in line for a “cool new product” palpably different from the psychology of “getting” it?

Anyone have any thoughts or insights into this?

I wanted to tackle this for a minute.¹  I would have to agree that the NEXUS is not selling as well as, well, most other smart phones on the market right now, but on the other hand let’s balance the assessment by pointing out a couple things contained in the short post above.

1.  The forecast anticipates selling 1 million units by the end of 2010.   This is actually quite a  significant figure for a phone that really only works best (for now) with T-Mobile.

2.  The Nexus is only “sold directly by Google.”  In fact, let’s be more pointed with this: it’s only sold by Google, through an online purchase.  Imagine if the only way to get an iPhone was through the Apple Store site.  Would they still have sold millions? Yes, undoubtedly, but one cannot discount the tremendous boost Apple received by having their products in the hands of thousands of people nationwide, simultaneously.  Not to mention the tremendous press coverage of the “long lines waiting to get their hands on their first iPhone” that we saw in every news media market.

Now, a million units sold in 1 year is relatively trivial compared to the numbers of even the iPhone 1st generation phone.  That said, consider the deck that Google has elected to stack against itself.

T-Mobile is a good and worthy network, so I am told.  But more often than not, people talk about it as if it is the little sibling of the  ”big 3″ when people talk about their cell-carriers.  I think I can count on one hand (without resorting to binary)  the number of friends and colleagues that use T-Mobile.  Selling a million units for a phone that is, out of the box, tied to a company with http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T-Mobile_USA is “not too shabby.”  (This compares right now with AT&T having approximately 85 million wireless customers.)  Given the large numbers of people who are locked in to their existing contracts, I don’t see many people switching carriers, especially since they are not afforded the opportunity to “try before they buy.”  (See next point)

Additionally, the decision by Google to only sell the Nexus online, through their website, has to hamstring their sales.  I may like tech, but when it comes to dropping $500 or more on a phone (and/or getting a long term contract) I want to be able to touch it first, see how it feels and responds in my hands, and feel like I was an informed consumer when  I make  my decision.  I suspect I am not alone.  More than once I have driven past our local T-Mobile store thinking that, if only they had a Nexus in the store, I would stop and at least test the waters.  I suspect that, if I could go in to a T-Mobile and not only play with the phone a bit, but talk with them about the affordability of switching from AT&T to T-Mobile, I would make the switch.  And again, I suspect I am not alone.

Finally, early reports of lack-luster customer support by Google has most likely scared off a number of would-be consumers.  Take away the store front/salesperson access, and market your phone on a network that would require me to switch carriers, and I am going to want, nay expect, a rather significant online and “on phone” support structure.   Unfortunately, Google has grown a culture based around offering “free” and “Beta” services.  Expectations of support for “free” services are far lower than expectations when one spends a significant amount of cash.

And make no mistake–$500 is significant.

In the final (as of today) analysis, I would say that 1 million units sold is actually a remarkable number given that Google has left the confines of their “core competency” (which I will describe as creating free and innovative software-based experiences) and ventured in to the world of offering “for sale” hardware products.²  Additionally, they seem to be wanting to “play by the rules” of traditional retailing instead of breaking new ground in the cellphone industry (as was speculated prior to the offering of the Nexus).

What does the future really hold for the Nexus line?  It is now a waiting game, I suppose.  Imagine Google addressing even 1 of the issues above. An expansion to another network (such as a Verizon or AT&T) or even the opening of sales at T-Mobile stores could make a significant difference for the phone.  Or, perhaps they utimately will rewrite the rules for cell-phones, offering free phones to those that actively use Google services, extending the Ad Revenue model to a whole new domain.

Considering the mis-steps one can only conclude that the Nexus succeeds, despite itself.

He is also a self-professed liberal. This is not surprising. He believes that we need to look out for our neighbors, and his view of neighbor is expansive. So understandably (I hop) I found myself pondering if I am missing something. Is there something “great” about liberalism as we know it today? And if it is “great” does that mean conservatism somehow misses the boat?

After much reflection, I realized that we have two problems facing us. First, the liberal ideal of caring for those around you is not only a good one, it’s Biblical. We are called on by Christ to love our neighbors. And Christ didn’t draw any neighborhood boundaries, either. On the other hand, we are faced with an ever-enlarging government that, despite all the best intentions and heartfelt goodwill, never seems to deliver on the “big promises.”

My conclusion? Liberalism doesn’t scale–and it wasn’t ever intended to. For us to love our neighbor we must be in contact with our neighbors. We can care best for those we touch. I suspect this was designed into our nature.

There have been many articles and books written, speeches given, and studies done, identifying that we respond more positively, and give more freely, to concerns closer to home. So we are hard-wired to care for those around us. This “local giving” may not be motivated from a pure heart, but at least we know it happens. Superfreakonomics gives us a perspective on this altruism: ‘Most giving is, as economists call it, impure altruism or warm-glow altruism. You give not only because you want to help but because it makes you look good, or feel good, or perhaps feel less bad.”]

So we, for whatever reasons or motivations, generally want to help our neighbors. Surely that extends to those we cannot see, correct? Well, the authors of the book SuperFreakonomics would perhaps argue no. Not only do they essentially argue that liberalism doesn’t scale, they go a step further and discusses research that indicates that, when given an opportunity, people will not only fail to behave benevolently towards their neighbor, they will in fact, cheat them. But what is most interesting here, is that, in the research they discussed, the cheating occurred most often between people who were not neighbors. “In the data, List found an interesting split: the out-of-town dealers cheated more often than the locals.”

So here is where I believe liberalism, or altruism, fails. When we ask the government to step in and perform altruistic acts, we ask the government to do a few things on our behalf:
1. We want an non-person to demonstrate humanity. We ask that the government “care.”
2. We want the government to make the “right” choices about what and whom to care for. Of course, we find that often that means bringing the “bacon” (or “Pork”) back to our own districts, where we “see the need.”
3. We want the government to do all this, without actually requiring that we pay for it, and simultaneously wanting the government to make sure someone else pays for it (“raise the taxes on the wealthy.”)

So over time, we find that government is called on less to be altruistic on a grand scale, and becomes for nearly all a way to force others to give money to causes and people they otherwise might not support, while simultaneously bringing resources to bear on my own local problems. Government then takes on the roll of proxy for the same local concerns we used to care for ourselves!

This is, of course, simply a blog. I make no pretense of conducting large scale research myself on this topic. I am simply tying together my readings, and my observations of the world around me. It seems to me that most people want to help those close to them, and most when presented with true and compelling need or tragedy, will give. But when we rely on our government to function on our behalf we become disconnected. We no longer have those “feel good” moments that cause us to practice “warm glow altruism.” Government

And then, over time, we stop caring.

Here is a video of the first of the linedances of the night.

Oh–and it’s never too late to donate to THON and the Four Diamonds Fund.

Donations can be sent to:
CV Four Diamonds Fund
Cumberland Valley High School
6746 Carlisle Pike
Mechanicsburg, PA 17050
Attn: Elizabeth Rimpfel

Enjoy!

I have written about this all week, and I wanted to take another couple of minutes to remind you, dear reader, why they are doing this.

(Paraphrased from the Four Diamonds site “About us“) CV HS joins many other schools, and Penn State, in helping raise money for the Four Diamonds Fund. This fund was started in 1972 by Charles and Irma Millard soon after their son, Christopher, died of cancer at 14 years of age. They named the fund after a story their son wrote while battling cancer. In that story, he wrote about a knight that had to find the four diamonds of Courage, Wisdom, Honesty, and Strength. You can read his story, by visiting the Four Diamonds Fund site.

The students at Cumberland Valley HS have worked tirelessly through this year raising funds, and they have been doing this for 4 years (according to the Four Diamonds site) and last year, they raised $55,500 for the Four Diamonds Fund–the second largest school mini-thon amount!

Let’s give credit where it’s due. CVHS isn’t alone. Central Dauphin HS (15 yrs running a mini thon) raised $68,612 in 2009. All told, for the 2008-09 school year 38 schools (from elementary schools through HS) raised over 3/4 of a MILLION dollars for the Fund.

Please, consider a donation to CV THON. Visit their website at http://CVSCHOOLS.ORG/THON and go to “Donors” (or, simply Click Here!)

All the schools unite with one hope, one dream, one cause–to stop Childhood cancer. And they do it for one reason: FOR THE KIDS.

So in the spirit of unity, today, I will include a Central Dauphin THON Dodgeball Video.

The THON Team at Cumberland Valley >are not afraid. They have been planning and working, and fund-raising, year round, anticipating their “big event.” They apparently also have an “in” with God. In looking at the weather maps, and they way the storm will swirl about Pennsylvania, it appears our portion of South-Central PA will emerge relatively unscathed and, more importantly, with no school cancellations that would have a negating effect on CV THON.

So I am left with two requests: Pray for “no snow.” And, when it comes to donations, “Pray for Rain.” Pray, that our community will continue to reach out, and touch hundreds of lives through the love and dedication of these high school kids!

I am posting a triple video threat today. First, I wanted to share a video from Penn State’s THON in 2009, entitled “Where are They Now.” A powerful testimony to the love and devotion the THON has, and the impact the Four Diamonds Fund has had on children 10 15, or 20 years after they were diagnosed with pediatric cancer.

The second video shows just home much fun CV THON students have, as they find creative ways to not only raise money For The Kids, but to do it while having fun with each other (This time–dodge-ball.) Check the schedule. They have this Dodge Ball TOURNAMENT scheduled DURING CV THON! According to Matthew, they have about 30 teams — “It’s EPIC.”

Finally, no plea for you, dear readers, to “Pray for Rain” would be complete without including the song from PFR.

FOR THE KIDS!

Where are They Now

DODGEBALL

PFR

I am sure you are wondering “how can I donate, and ensure these kids get credit for it?” It’s simple. From their website:

For Members of the Community

Donations of $100 and up will receive a t-shirt.

Donations can be sent to:

CV Four Diamonds Fund
Cumberland Valley High School
6746 Carlisle Pike
Mechanicsburg, PA 17050
Attn: Elizabeth Rimpfel

These kids work hard year round.  They are planning, canning (raising funds at sporting events and retailers), and reaching out to the media.  They certainly know that it is important to work hard FOR THE KIDS.

BUT… they also know how to have fun.  Don’t believe me? Just watch this video.

Take the time to learn about the wide range of activities they have planned at the CV THON by visiting their site at http://cvschools.org/thon and then watch the video of last year’s LINE DANCE at CV THON!

FOR THE KIDS!

…to conquer childhood cancer by assisting children treated at Penn State Hershey Children’s Hospital and their families through superior care, comprehensive support, and innovative research.

Any family with a child being treated for pediatric cancer at Penn StateHershey Children’s Hospital is automatically eligible for support.

But wait-there’s MORE!

Cumberland Valley High School has their THON Dance Marathon this coming weekend.  High school kids couldn’t sit by and watch Penn State students raise all the funds.  They too were moved to help in the fight against childhood cancer.  They too wanted to contribute in not only money, but time and passion.  They too wanted to dance to victory over Pediatric Cancer.

So they will have their THON dance, February 27th-28th, 2010.  Learn more about CV Thon here.  Or see pictures from last year’s CV THON.

You can support CV THON by donating directly to the Four Diamonds Fund.  Just visit their site at: http://www.pennstatehershey.org/web/development/give

Oh, and watch these videos.

Take the time to read about THON, and the Four Diamonds Foundation, and please, donate. Any amount helps. Go visit http://THON.org

And while you are thinking THON, remember, Cumberland Valley HS will be hosting their CV THON this coming weekend–and the proceeds there go to the Four Diamond Foundation as well, visit http://www.cvschools.org/thon

Every year at Penn State the largest student-run philanthropic organization pulls together with the Dance Marathon called THON that culminates a year-long effort at fund raising. The funds raised go to the Four Diamonds Foundation providing support to children with cancer and their families.  From THON.org:

In 1973, a small group of dedicated Penn State students held our first Dance Marathon. That year, 34 dancers participated and raised $2,000. Since then, THON’s presence in the Penn State community has grown exponentially. THON now has 15,000 student volunteers, 700 dancers, and has raised more than $61 million, benefiting The Four Diamonds Fund at Penn State Children’s Hospital.

Last year, THON helped raise 7.4 MILLION dollars for the Four Diamonds Foundation.

To learn more about THON and to make your donation to help fight pediatric cancer, watch the streaming vide, and visit THON.org.

FOR THE KIDS!

Free Videos by Ustream.TV

Enjoy.

But could he have lost his touch? Could Steve Jobs and Apple not only missed it this time, but could they be responsible for bringing down a whole nascent industry with them?

On the heels of the introduction of the Apple iPad (and their announcement that books would cost between $13 and $15) we saw an emboldened Macmillan publishing house pressing their case against Amazon.  For a brief moment Amazon seemed to be fighting the good fight for consumers, and went so far as to ban direct sales of Macmillan books.

Macmillan was simply “acting out” what Steve Jobs told to Walt Mossberg when he said that the prices would end up being the same (between Apple and Amazon), because the publishers are not happy (with Amazon) and are going to pull their books from there.  It appears that Steve Jobs is doing the work of the Publishers, pushing the price points up, rather than down.  Rather than being a champion of the individual, does this make Steve Jobs simply a big business “hack?”

The bottom line here really is that Amazon knew 2 years ago what Steve Jobs should know now. Verso Direct has conducted a book buyers behavioral study/survey, in which they discover that the magic price-point for digital books seems to be right at $9.99.  According to the article “Amazon Flanks…” when Verso presented their study and broke down their findings, they reported that 3 out of 5 people will consider buying an ebook at or below $9.99.  Raise the price, and that drops to 1 out of 5.

The article then goes on to identify the real “winners” as pirates.

Is it possible that, in his rush to kill Amazon, Steve Jobs may have instead spell the death of eBooks?¹

With Apple’s release of the iPad, and their move into eReader book sales through the iBook, some have argued that Apple has just rung the bell, tolling the death of the Kindle.  Others argue that, among other things, the Kindle meets a certain “niche” (just as the iPad serves a niche) and thus will not only survive but thrive.  In fact, an Amazon spokesperson said, in that NY Times article:

Customers can read and sync their Kindle books on the iPhone, iPod Touch, PCs, and soon BlackBerry, Mac and iPad. Kindle is purpose-built for reading. Weighing in at less than 0.64 pounds, Kindle fits comfortably in one hand for hours, has an E Ink display that is easy on the eyes even in bright daylight, two weeks of battery life, and 3G wireless with no monthly fees — all at a $259 price. Kindle editions of New York Times best sellers and most new releases are only $9.99.

This is a key strength of the Kindle –the portability of reading. As I have written before, in several places, a move to ubiquitous reading seems to be the greatest opportunity facing publishers.  Make reading your books, or magazine, tied to the reader, not the device.  With the Kindle publishing/software reader business unit Amazon is heading down that road. I can move from Kindle-enabled device to device, and when I pick up a device, it will automatically sync to where I last was reading in any of the other devices.  This actually makes having several different devices quite attractive, so that I can use the device that is most convenient for the task (or location) at hand.

So that brings us to the “Kindle reading experience” on the iPhone.  I personally like the Kindle app for the iPhone.  In some ways it is superior to the Kindle itself, specifically in how it handles highlighting and notetaking.¹  This makes the iPad a very attractive device to me, as a Kindle reader for those tasks when I want to highlight and take notes, generally for work-related reading.  I can even see Amazon enhancing the app on the iPhone/iPad even further, perhaps blending the Kindle App with Stanza for a better reading experience.

Even the author of the article in the NY Times that put forward “Three Reasons why the iPad WILL kill the Amazon Kindle” has conceded that the Kindle app has significant draw:

Kindle’s store and its reading application for the iPhone are both excellent, simple experiences for purchasing and consuming books. Amazon understands this market better than anyone and could easily sell more books on the iPad than Apple could through its new iTunes bookstore. Amazon also offers an excellent recommendation system, and I can envision some users opting for the Kindle application on their fancy new iPads.

I can actually envision more than “some users” opting for the Kindle application–especially if they are able to develop a similar flashy interface for showing your bookshelf, and helping you “buy” books from Amazon.  Don’t forget–a significant number of people have already heavily invested in the DRM’d (copy protected) books sold  by Amazon, and they will not want to leave that investment behind.  Will they opt then for what will be (most likely) another DRM’d book format?  Say what you will about the fact that the Amazon books aren’t portable, there is some comfort in having all the books you purchased available for download from a single repository.  Avid Kindle readers may not want to leave that behind.

So the question becomes: will Apple now “ban” the Kindle App (and possibly Stanza) for the same reason that it banned other apps, including the Google Voice app?   The reason, as you may recall, was that the app “duplicated functionality” that the phone provided.  Other apps have been rejected (er, “not approved” — sorry) for the same reason.  Clearly, by entering into the eBook sales business they are seeking to directly compete with Amazon in this “space.”

What do YOU think? Will Apple ban the Kindle App in the near future?

Jump forward nearly 4 years and many MegaDecibles of hype later, and you can see the lack of creativity still abounds.  Most prognosticators are predicting “a larger iPhone” with some of the images shown (purportedly “legitimate from inside sources”) showing exactly the same layout–to include a speaker where there is currently an ear piece.

Give me a break.  We won’t have to hold this up to our ears so why should Apple be captive to that design?

I see no reason for the device to look “like a larger iPhone” except in the broad brushes of Steve Job’s design Ken.  Remember, Jobs likes simplicity, and we were “told” after the release of the iPhone that he wasn’t happy with the concessions they had to make for the few buttons that exist on the iPhone.

What can we expect to see? (and check back in 16 hours for my Mea Culpa.)

• All Glass Front
• Touch Interface
• No buttons on the front
• In fact, no buttons.  Except power.
• Pencil thin
• limited physical connections, if any. Yup, no Firewire, no USB. Maybe not even an iPod connector. WiFi/3G only.
• Power connector? (can you say “no–inductive charging?”)

So, if the rumored names are true, expect exactly that-a slate.  A blank slate.

My thoughts? Apple will surprise us again.  And that should be no surprise.

Tech Tutoring, Apple Ruminations, Google Nexus, Weekly Picks, and more…

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Stories:

• Initial sales of Google Nexus 1 Phone: 20k in first week….shocking, or not?
• Rumors of 4G iphones circulating.
• Magic Jack uses “femtocell” technology.
• Nintendo finally gets NetFlix on the Wii.
• Matt Brady joins to discuss how Cumberland Valley HS is teaming with Microsoft.

PHOTO TIP:  With DSLR (and most digital cameras) changing your resolution can change your photo speed.

PICKS OF THE WEEK:

Steve: Blueant z9i BT earpiece

Tony: Mirafiber Ultimate Cloth:  http://www.southerncarparts.com/ultimate-cloth-p-712.html

Courtney: http://blog.louisgray.com/2010/01/abuzz-launches-social-media-search.html (techie) & a bit easier http://www.dimdim.com/

Past Picks of the Week now available at: http://tinyurl.com/RTPicks

websites to visit:

http://getthenext.com

http://theprofessornotes.com

Show Voicemail: 814.808-JOE1  (814.808.5631)

Tony is: tony.pittman@gmail.com  or twitter.com/tonypittman

Steve is: scmprofessor@gmail.com or twitter.com/scmprofessor and he blogs at http://theprofessornotes.com

Guest, Courtney Engel is http://courtneyengle.com and @courtneyengle on Twitter

CES 2010, MagicJack, New iPhone possible, Google Nexus miscalculation, The eReader boom, Our weekly picks.

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STORIES:

• CES: Is the Consumer Electronics Show still relevant?
  • http://www.engadget.com/tag/ces/
• Magic Jack uses “femtocell” technology
• Hot off the rumor mill: New iPhone by April?
• More Phone Conversations. Google Nexus leaves customers “sour”
• Ereader boom “kindles” a variety of options

PICKS OF THE WEEK:

Steve: Keurig Coffee Maker

Tony: Google Voice + POTS = low cost home office solution.

Chris: iPhone Explorer

Stevier: Nike+iPod Nike+iPod

Past Picks of the Week now available at: http://tinyurl.com/RTPicks

Show Voicemail: 814.808-JOE1  (814.808.5631)

Tony is: tony.pittman@gmail.com  or twitter.com/tonypittman

Steve is: scmprofessor@gmail.com or twitter.com/scmprofessor and he blogs at http://theprofessornotes.com

Matthew made the big decision today.  He went back and forth, considering a Droid from Verizon, or upgrading his iPhone to a 3Gs.  (If you follow @scmprofessor or @spreadhdgfx on twitter you know the questions we were asking.)

After much consideration, he decided on the 3Gs.  Part of the decision was based on the fact that AT&T agreed to waive the activation fee.  This was no small thing–Verizon was willing to wave it if we switched to them, so it made AT&T competitive.

We did learn one other interesting tidbit–AT&T will be getting their own Motorola Android-based phone, as well as their own rebranded HTC Hero (again, Android based.) later this year.  While waiting until March (or later) wasn’t going to meet Matt’s immediate need (remember his video about the damaged 1st Gen iPhone), this is good news for those of us leaving AT&T to get to a Droid.

(On the other hand, if the Droid is a viable alternative to the iPhone, so that you can leave AT&T, well, that’s a different story.)

A birthday present for our soon to be 6 year old son was being delivered by UPS. Initially their site said (according to my mother-in-law) that it had been delivered on our porch on Thursday. When my wife called UPS on Friday to say that it was not delivered she was told, “Mack Brady called and requested it be returned to sender.” My wife pointed out that Mack Brady was 5 years old and expecting that box to contain lots of LEGOs from his grandparents. He was unlikely to make the call much less request that the package be returned to sender.

It was delivered 5 days (3 business days) later.

I find this experience very interesting as we seek to learn valuable service delivery,  supply chain, and life lessons.

SHIPPER-CARRIER RELATIONSHIPS

First, as a logistician and Supply Chain professional, I am reminded that shippers (the company in this case selling the LEGOs) are often at the mercy of the carrier (in this case UPS.)  They enter into a contract, expecting in good faith that UPS will deliver the package to the customer.  In fact, there is an expectation on the part of the shipper that the carrier will, if necessary, make several attempts before requesting that the customer come to them. ¹  In this case, UPS not only failed to deliver the product on the behalf of the shipper, they then created a rather interesting backstory for why they failed to deliver.

IN TRANSIT VISIBILITY (ITV)

In addition, this story speaks to the importance of accurate tracking of packages.  There are two parts to the tracking issue that confuse me.  First, the fact that the website tracking initially reported delivery to the porch is interesting, since the package was not actually delivered.  ²  Initially, we believe the online tracking to be accurate.  Our whole business operation is based on accuracy in reporting.  The shipper expects the carrier to deliver the package and provide updated information along the way as necessary.  The carriers themselves rely on accurate ITV to know where their drivers and trucks are at any given time, and provide assurance to customers and shippers that they are providing appropriate care for their items.  And finally, ITV provides receivers (in this case my 5 y.o. nephew) a sense of security knowing that, even if a package has not yet arrived, it is safely on it’s way and that the carrier know exactly where it is.

Given the importance of ITV, the systems are designed to ensure and  enhance accuracy through barcode readers and digital signatures.  When these systems fail, and they will, carriers should not respond with finger pointing, or cover-ups, but rather work to understand the cause of the failure and attempt to once again poka-yoke the process.

HONESTY IN SERVICE RECOVERY

The failure of in-transit visibility unfortunately led to the next, and perhaps more disturbing to anyone in this profession, reaction by the carrier’s representative.   As I am sure you are all thinking by now (and as my sister-in-law pointed out to the Customer Service Representative (CSR) from UPS) 5 y.o.s generally don’t ask for their much anticipated birthday presents to be “returned to sender.”  So this strikes me as a serious “CYA” ³ moment.  I suspect that, more often than not, this line works on their customers. ⁴   Now, we can’t know where the decision was made to “adjust” the record like this (or is it “falsify?”)  It could be that the driver mistakenly marked “left on porch” when delivering another package and that, upon arriving back at the distribution center realized he/she still had a package on the truck–and thus covered the tracks.  Or it could be that the CSR, in an effort to deflect blame away from UPS, confabulated on her own?  (I highly doubt this one is the case, but it’s possible.)

Just as “in transit visibility” relies on accurate reporting of information to enhance decision making, so does customer service, and service recovery.  One does not help the business by covering one’s tracks.⁵  Admittedly not every bad experience will result in a blog post such as this one–and that is all the more reason for carriers to be ever vigilant.  If given a choice between carriers, and you have had an experience where a carrier (or anyone, really) has been dishonest in their dealings with you, are you more, or less, likely to choose that carrier?  Decisions are often made on trust–trust that items will be delivered, and trust that firms will make every effort to make good when they don’t.  When one has a negative experience such as this, then one is more likely to perhaps go with a less reliable, or more costly, provider that they can trust.

When faced with our own failures, I learned a valuable lesson from my earliest military mentor, Dave Morris (@nicheguy on twitter.)  You step up, admit your failure, and work to make it right.⁶  I have generall