How to Prevent IT Project Failure (2 of 3)
2. Planning and executing projects
IT project managers are responsible for keeping scope, budget, and schedules on track, but can they really be expected to do so when they don’t know how many hours it takes to accomplish a task, or how many hours remain in the project? In this instance, actuals must be tracked in order to take a project from a plan to successful execution.
Let's put it this way: If 10% of a project's allocated budget has been spent and only 5% of the work has been completed, there is a problem. Those who track employee actuals and find this out early in the project have a fighting chance of recovery. Those who don't will find out much later on that their projects are drastically over budget. This is just one example of how real-time data enables project managers to fix problems before they start.
Curt holds 7 patents and is the CEO of a resource management software company.
What Kind Of Vacation Are You Taking This Summer?
It used to be that where you went on vacation was the big question. Now, the big question is are you actually going somewhere at all and if so just how much work are you taking with you.
Sigh...
Corporate America, shame on you.
Corporate workers, shame on you for letting them do it to you.
How often do people actually go away for a week or two anymore and leave all the electronic leashes at home?
Before you go away this summer, I propose making two lists. One list is the standard "what do I need to take" list; the other, however, is the "what should I leave at home" list.
The goal is to keep work commitments to an absolute minimum and family commitments to an absolute maximum. Can we agree on that?
Make the second list first.
What can you leave at home?
1. How about the laptop? If you limit yourself to e-mail on your smartphone; you may check e-mail more often, but your responses will be shorter, if you bother to answer at all. It's much easier to sit down at a laptop, look up two hours and three e-mails later and realize your family went hiking without you. Don't expect a warm reunion when they get back, either.
2. No briefcases, please! It's something to haul around that is a highly visual symbol to your family that you aren't quite all there with them. Put the absolute most necessary documents on a flash drive and strike a compromise to only use the hotel computers in the executive center once a day for a very limited time (like the hour before breakfast). Again, using some other way to access the Internet other than a laptop makes it more difficult to get lost in time and cheat on your promises of restraint.
3. Your work ethic! You've earned your vacation. You need your vacation. Your family makes enough sacrifices playing second fiddle to your long hours and distracted moods the rest of the year. So be a slacker and focus on having a good time with them.
What can you take on vacation, but leave in the hotel room when you're out with the family?
Your cell phone! Yes, your cell phone. Check your messages once or twice a day as needed. Put the office and colleagues on notice that you are going off the reservation for a time and plan around it. Nothing is more obnoxious or sad to watch a Mom, Dad or spouse taking business calls on a tour bus. FYI.. your family and everyone else on the bus will hate you and you deserve it.
What should you take?
- Sunscreen
- Bathing suit
- Something to wear out to dinner
- A trashy paperback
- Flip flops
Get the idea? Now, go have fun.
How to Prevent IT Project Failure (1 of 3)
1: Managing resources
IT project teams are made up of knowledge workers categorized by skill types or job functions, and finding the right person to assign to a project or task can often present challenges. Typically, quality staff is scarce and therefore heavily sought by competing projects. Project managers often don't know when IT workers will be taking vacation or spending time on non-project work, making it nearly impossible to schedule projects effectively.
In this case, they need real-time access to team member schedules, tasks and available time. The system must also be web-based, since the team is probably not all in one workspace 24 hours a day. This is why spreadsheets don't work very well. Not only are they unable to be audited, but they don't allow for global access from various participants.
Tomorrow we'll talk about planning...
Curt Finch is the author of a project management book and lives in Texas.
Sherpa Is Classic Google: Creepy
Sherpa is Google and T-Mobile's big bragging feature on it's updated Android phone due out later this summer.
I wonder if it is something to be excited about or creeped out about?
Sherpa is a built-in app designed to take in all your user preferences and current location and guide you to other things you like based on those preferences.
So, for example, if you use your phone a lot to look up movie times; plan on getting steered to more movie times and even suggested titles if you've been purchasing your tickets via phone.
This is sooooooo Google.
Everytime I access my Gmail account, I notice that the ads on the right side of the screen mysteriously tie-in to what I'm writing as I compose a note to a friend or colleague. This feels like a huge invasion of my privacy.
If I'm writing about my kids; toy ads tend to pop-up, for example. Some may find that helpful. I feel like Big Brother is watching me. It also makes me feel stereotyped and pigeon-holed. I know that to marketeers, I'm just a demographic that needs to be identified, categorized and targeted. But, uh, actually I am a person and it's not that simple. Just because I'm writing about my kids, doesn't mean that I want to buy a toy for them at the moment.
Sherpa sounds like Big Brother to go.
Whatever happened to "Don't be evil." as Google's corporate mantra?
Mobile Device Etiquette
The NY Times just published an article on manners and mobile devices. In today's world, it is not uncommon to see people break out their Blackberrys and iPhones in meetings, but how far is too far? In the article, the chief executive of a NYC marketing firm recounts a client who played a racing game on his iPhone for an hour and a half during an important meeting. “We didn’t say anything," he admits. "We still wanted the business.”
Yet the issue merits debate as web-enabled smartphones become more and more common in the working world. (In fact, I previously blogged about how these gadgets are the new makeup for men.) A senior adviser to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made an interesting point on the purpose such devices can serve in meetings: “You’ll have half the participants BlackBerrying each other as a submeeting, with a running commentary on the primary meeting. BlackBerrys have become like cartoon thought bubbles.”
If business is a competitive sport, meetings are game day. Meetings are where you are on stage and being evaluated, where you have a chance to shine, where decisions are made, people are informed and things get done. Play with your iPhone in practice or on the sidelines, not when you're out on the field!
Curt Finch writes for a project management blog as well.
From My Cold Dead Hands
I'm just not giving up my keypad on my smartphone.
The way things are going, it may be difficult next time I re-up my two year contract and switch out phones again.
I see which way the wind blows.
The iPhone doesn't have a keypad. The new Google Android debuted this week dumped it's keypad.
It's a easy way to lighten up a smartphone, which is why Google undoubtedly dropped theirs between the G1 and the new, upcoming G3.
I've been using my Palm Centro for the past couple of months now. It's not that hip; but it essentially has all the same features as a Blackberry Curve (only it's smaller for my little ole' hands).
Like the Curve, it offers both a keypad and a touch screen.
Two months later, I can tell you I use the touchscreen minimally. The keypad, on the other hand, gets a workout everyday. I even use the stylus more than the touch screen.
Partial to a keypad, it was the biggest reason I didn't get an iPhone.
I chose comfort over cool.
I am heartened that the new Palm Pre still has a keypad, although you have to access it with a slider (yuck! My last phone was a Sidekick and I swore never again on the slider feature!).
Let's hope Blackberry stays true to its design. If so, it may get my business after all next time around.
Microsoft's Energy Saver Site
It's called Hohm and its beta site launched just yesterday.
Through Hohm, registered users can input all their energy usage information (all those specs at the bottom of the bill) and then Hohm spits out ways to shave those numbers.
As business people, we know this; saving money is easier and more lucrative than making money. For one thing, you don't pay taxes on money saved.
In the case of reducing energy usage:
1. It's good for the environment.
2. Not only do you save, but so do utility companies. What they lose on billing for that extra usage they more than make up for it on having to invest less in adding to or upgrading power grids.
3. If you know what you are using and where the energy hog points are in your business; eventually you won't need Hohm's analysis.
Until then, this is a great place to get started.
IT Project Failures Are On the Rise
The Standish Group just released a new CHAOS report on IT failure, and it ain't pretty: "32 percent of IT projects were considered successful, having been completed on time, on budget and with the required features and functions. Nearly one-in-four (24 percent) IT projects were considered failures, having been cancelled before they were completed, or having been delivered but never used. The rest (44 percent) were considered challenged: They were finished late, over budget, or with fewer than the required features and functions."
The chairman of The Standish Group was surprised by the results, and attributes them to the economic recession. "With project managers and business stakeholders taking on more work due to layoffs, they have less time to devote to each project, to go to meetings, to help with requirements planning and to do all the other activities that promote project success." It sounds like IT managers could use help managing and allocating scarce resources.
Curt Finch is the founder & CEO of a resource management software company.
A Bonnet For Your Blackberry
Actually, it's called a "Blackberry Visor" (which is far more manly and corporate).
Make no mistake, it's a bonnet; a great solution when too much sunlight is washing out the screen. It's also ideal for blocking out the wandering eyes of those nearby.
See for yourself. Here's a little must-have gadget for your crack, er uh, I mean Blackberry.
The Blackberry Mobile Visor folds up roughly to the size and weight of a credit card for a modest $8.95.
I still say that it's a bonnet. So, if you can deal with your mobile device looking like the "Little Blackberry on the Prairie" then go for it.
Pa would be proud.
In other news...
In case you haven't heard, Steve Jobs was back on the job this week. Just a couple of days after we all learned he had a liver transplant back in April, he arrived back at the office to announce that more than one million new iPhone 3GS devices have been sold since launching a couple of weeks ago.
He's inspired the personal computer industry since he helped create it some 30 years ago. Now, he is an inspiration for his medical resiliency. Sometime ago, an anonymous person checked "yes" at the DMV to be an organ donor if there life ever took a tragic turn. By doing so, he or she set fate in motion to one day save the life of one of the greatest innovators and entrepreneurs in modern history.
If you haven't done so already, I encourage you to say "God forbid, but just in case" and then check the box "yes" if you haven't done so already.
You just never know.
"Clear" Airport Security Service Is No More
And undoubtedly the 250,000 air travelers that subscribed to the service for $199 a year, will miss it greatly.
Verified Identity Pass provided the service which offered pre-screened security for it's subscribers. What that meant was just whizzing right past the wands and grey buckets and going to straight to the gate.
The service was honored at some 18 major airports across the country. In other words, it was a dream come true for many a frequent business flyer.
According to Verified Identity Pass, they could not "negotiate a deal with its senior creditor to continue operations". In other words, standby for the bankruptcy press release next.
Too bad! It looks like the economy is claiming yet another victim. No word on subscribers getting their money back, as of yet, either.
Meantime, it's back to the grey bucket lane effective immediately.
Can Twitter Make Money?
Jack Dorsey, co-founder of Twitter, has said, "I think
Twitter's a success for us when people stop talking about
it, when we stop doing these panels and people just use
it as a utility, use it like electricity." Interesting
theory - that the company will have "made it" when it is
not so widely discussed. "We put it on the same level as
any communication device. So, e-mail, SMS, phone. That's
where we want to be," he said.
He also seems quite comfortable with giving the company
time to find its footing. Constantly asked about how they
are going to make any money, Dorsey says, "We're going to
be patient, we're going to do it right. We're not going
to put something on top of it that doesn't fit."
Curt is the founder & CEO of a timesheet software company in Austin, Texas.
The Down-Lo On The New Google Phone
T-Mobile's new Android (Google's open source mobile software) phone is having it's official coming out party today, although it won't be available for purchase until late August.
It's called the MyTouch and reviewers are pretty much unanimous that it's a vast improvement over the G1.
The MyTouch will sell for that magic price point of $199 with a two year contract. It is twice as fast with twice the memory.
The big bragging points also include:
1. It's smaller than the iPhone, thanks in large part to doing away with the keyboard.
2. It has lots o' customization features (more than the iPhone), with a variety of skins, wallpaper choices, and tailored tabbing, etc.
3. It comes in three colors: black, white and oooh, la, la.. merlot!
4. Sherpa! Sherpa is a built-in app that is programmed to intuitively pick up on all your preferences and then guide you to other things it thinks you'll like. For example, if you lean towards barbeque joints and you are visiting Central Texas; guess what? Don't be surprised if a link to The County Line pops up on your phone. Sherpa knows your culinary preferences and location through its GPS feature; the rest is elementary dear Watson.
It's June 21st and our summer of the smartphone is officially in play.
Vanity URLs on Facebook
It looks like Facebook is now going to offer "vanity URLs",
choosing to include your username in the URL link to your
profile rather than the random ID numbers they have been
using so far. They say this will make it easier for others
to find you on the site.
Facebook is still at the top of the charts as far as social
networking sites go, though they have adapted themselves
over time in order to stay competitive. One example is
modifying the Facebook status functionality to resemble
Twitter's tweet system. Now this. Sites like MySpace and
Twitter have been customizing profile URLs for a long time.
In fact, Blaise DiPersia, a Facebook designer, predicts
the following: "We expect to offer even more ways to use
your Facebook username in the future."
Personally, I find the interface pretty confusing sometimes.
Maybe they can get some help in that area from Google or Apple.
Curt Finch is the founder & CEO of a resource management software company.
Would You Do This To Get A Job?
Yipes! The City of Bozeman, Montana is not playing around when it comes to doing online background checks of prospective employees.
I like to warn young professionals, in particular, from time to time that it would be in their best interest to keep their online presence "G" rated and controversy-free if they like being gainfully employed. Most employers have long since figured out how to Google their job candidates just in case.
But the City of Bozeman is taking it a step further; one really big step further.
Their job candidates are required to submit their login and passwords to any personal web sites, blogs, Facebook pages, etc. for a background check.
Woa! If this is considered legal, then I think our constitutional right to privacy just went code blue.
This makes my skin crawl. Let me count the ways:
1. Public image is one thing. A person's private life, whether online or in the material world, should remain just that; private! If it is so private that you need a password to access it; then that's a big clue it falls under "private life".
2. If a city is recruiting a really high profile position in the community, like police chief, then "yes" it might be wise to make sure he or she isn't pole dancing in a thong on youtube. Right now, the City of Bozeman is looking for someone to work in the water/sewer department. For that, do the town fathers really need to peek at their top candidates' Facebook page? I say pole dance all you want and thank you for being willing to wade in poo poo water to keep the pipes maintained.
3. This is for job candidates. So, whether you get the job or not; you have to reset all your passwords?
4. What kind of security measures are in place to protect the privacy of someone's online passwords from the peering eyes of anyone who may have access to those applications? Are they kept on file?
5. Most people don't have compromising information on their profile pages of LinkedIn or Facebook or Blogger. But, it can include personal information that would bias an employer to keep looking for another candidate. We all know that an employer is not allowed to ask intimate questions during a job interview like "Do you plan on getting pregnant anytime soon?" or "Do you go to church?" or "What's your sexual orientation?". These are the kinds of details that an employer could just conveniently gleen in the name of vetting a candidate's online image. For example, my son has autism. There are some employers that might avoid hiring me if they knew that. They might assume an extra burden of higher health insurance premiums for my family or more employee absenteism to tend to a child with a disability. I don't mind saying it, because I wouldn't want to work for anyone like that anyway. But, not everyone has a choice. And in my case, it wouldn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that I have a child with autism from all the puzzle piece ribbons, etc on some of my private profile pages.
See where I'm going with this...
IRS Volunteers To Dump Taxing Cell Phone Rules
It's about time. Both the Obama administration and the IRS are urging Congress to do away with a twenty year tax law that requires cell phone users to break down their use between personal and business; deducting only the business use part, of course.
It's maddening, it's outdated, it's stupid and good luck finding even a aging boy scout that bothers doing it.
When it comes to regulating technology, a 20 year old law is about as a up- to- date as Hammurabi's code.
I'm guessing even Congress can't screw this one up. After all, I can't see anyone getting re-elected at the midterms because they made personal cell phone use on the work account taxable; especially when the IRS now admits its largely unenforceable and, well, dumb.
Let's hope this gets squared away in time for next April. If not, it's another tax year of filling out the deduction part with our fingers crossed again.
Quoted by the Associated Press, John Walls for CTIA-The Wireless Association put the law in perspective:
"In 1989, cell phones were considered a luxury item that were actually referred to as car phones. Now, we have unlimited calling on our cell phones. We have free nights and weekends. The company is not even paying for that. Why should I get taxed for that?"
- John Walls, vice president of public affairs for CTIA-The Wireless Association
Help - My Printer Is Broken Again
Inside a printer cartridge (laser) are tiny, tiny pieces of
plastic. Yep. "Toner" is actually ground up plastic. Who
knew? In any case, these tiny, tiny pieces like to do
things like get all over your hands, your clothes, the
floor, and everything else (including the paper for which
it's intended).
In order to alleviate this during shipping and
installation, cartridge vendors stick this plastic strip
inside the toner cartridge to prevent the cartridge from
dumping all over everything.
When installing a toner cartridge, therefore, it behooves
the installer to remove said strip so the toner can
actually exit the cartridge and melt to the paper, thus
providing ink. This is 'step 6' in the instruction manual.
I only mention this because 3 times in the past 2 months
I've been told of a printer that's "not working" to find
that said strip was not removed (according to my printer guy).
Cheers.
Curt Finch writes for a project management blog as well.
Salesforce.com Launches Free Version
You do get what you pay for. But, Salesforce.com has launched this week a free version of force.com. This could be a great way for a smaller business to go play in the cloud for the first time.
The stripped down version serves up to 100 users and allows businesses to run web sites and other web applications on the cloud. Salesforce.com even throws in one customized web application. Naturally, they are hoping this will only wet your appetite to upgrade to a paid version. Nothing wrong with that; they are a business after all.
Here are the details, if you are interested.
In other news...
Google has some competition among Orthodox and Ultra-Orthodox Jews. Introducing "Koogle", a search engine programmed to kick up kosher results. Up until now, surfing the web has put Orthodox Jews in a compromising position. Koogle, a playful reference to the jewish noodle and variation of Google (and not the flavored peanut butter from the 70's), doesn't allow online shopping on the Sabbath, and filters out religiously offensive things like television sets and immodestly dressed women.
Your Next Accounting System Will Be ... Free!
I spoke with Tate Holt, the CEO of NetBooks recently.
Now he's not selling the kind of netbook that is a
replacement for your laptop. What NetBooks has is an
online accounting system that runs in the Amazon cloud
that's free - my favorite price - forever if you are a
one person company. As your company grows to 5 people
they will charge you around $50/month.
It handles inventory, billing, keeps track of customer
addresses and reminds you to keep in touch with them,
and is designed to do it all simply and easily.
My wife runs a small business on QuickBooks. Most small
companies do this. Sometimes the updates they push on her
and the support people she has to deal with have made the
experience expensive and unpleasant.
And although Quickbooks does have an online
product where you don't have to install anything, it's features are rumored
to be substantially less robust than those of the installed version.
As many of you know I have for years advocated that all new companies
should be started "serverless".
The Netbooks offering certainly gets your attention if you're
starting a small business today.
The internet is a powerful catalyst for commoditization, particularly
in the software industry. These guys are trying to do it to Quickbooks,
and to a lesser degree, Netsuite.
There is no better time to start your small business.
Curt Finch is the founder & CEO of a resource management software company.
Google's Local Business Center: A Winner
If you have a local business that relies on foot traffic of any kind, then you can't afford to pass up on this Google freebe for small businesses.
Google recently beefed up it's "Local Business Center" offering. It's one stop shopping (without paying a dime) to get your business red flagged on Google maps, with your own personalized description, store hours and even online coupons. But wait there's more. It also includes a dashboard to track analytics, like for example, where your customers are coming from (as in zip codes) finding you through the search engine.
Here's a great little explainer video from Google's Youtube channel that explains it better than I can and here's the link where you can go to sign up and get started.
25k For Best eBay Business Plan
Some companies are losing customers these days and some are losing businesses. eBay falls into the latter category and they can't really blame it on the economy. Ever since eBay reworked its fee structures last year, sellers have been jumping ship faster than you can say "Hummel collectibles"
The acquisition of Half.com didn't help either; leaving many sellers feeling undercut in sales by it's prominent position on the site.
Maybe this will help.
eBay has announced a contest to attract some new blood and perhaps renew some excitement in the community. The auction giant is offering $25,000 to be used to launch a new eBay business going not to the highest bidder, but the one with the best business plan.
If interested, check out their contest portal page to get started. Entrance requires not only a business plan, but an online video pitch too. The eBay community will be able to view the v-pitches and pick a winner (somehow?).
Yes, sounds like a good way to re-energize the eBay community. Will it be enough to heal the wounds? I doubt it. Getting Half.com off the site and resending those fee structures would be more helpful. Call me crazy, call me madcap; but I think the best way to fix a problem is to actually fix the problem. To use an overused phrase from last year's Presidential campaign; this may be more like lipstick on the pig.
That being said, I was nosing around the contest portal site and would actually recommend it as a good primer for anyone starting out on eBay whether you enter the contest or not. It has some pretty decent tips and advice to help an entrepreneur get focused.
When they start posting videos of business plan pitches, I suspect it will be a good resource, as well.
Stay tuned.
1/3 of Discarded Hard Disks Contain Sensitive Data
Your machine dies, and sometimes rather than repair it you go buy a new one, right, but what bad
thing happens if you throw away an old hard drive without erasing it?
Do you have old Quickbooks files that contain credit card, social security or bank account numbers?
This could leave you at risk for enabling identity theft to occur on some of your former employees.
Not good.
A storage technology firm, WiebeTech has run a study where they bought some random hard
drives off of eBay and afterwards wrote this white paper on what they found. All of these drives
they bought contained data that you would not want to let out of your company.
Department of Defense secrets were recently found on an old hard drive and 34% of hard drives
studied, had either personal data that could be identified to an individual or commercial data
identifying a company or organization.
There are devices that are standalone and do not require a working computer,
that you can connect your drive up to and get it properly erased.
Curt holds 7 patents and is the CEO of a resource management software company.
So Much For The $99 iPhone
If you're an existing AT&T customer, then to hell with you!
The $99 8g iPhone (just announced this week) can cost up to $499, depending on how far along you are in your existing contract. The new 16g iPhone 3GS; up to $599 and the 32g iPhone 3GS goes up to a whopping $699.
Of course, if you are an AT&T virgin walking into their store for the first time; then YOU get your pick of those same phones starting at the $99 price (with the standard two year contract).
We all know the drill; you get the cheap price with the contract. But there's something about this one that is just wrong. Why can't you just extend your contract out to the two years and get the same price as everyone else?
Let me get this straight; the reward for customer loyalty is a 500% markup in price? Does this sound right to you?
Did I mention that there's an $18 activation fee, as well, for swapping out your phone on top of paying the highway robbery price for the iPhone?
Please tag this posting under shameless.
P.S. Here's a link to the customer forum page on the AT&T site if you want to read or join into the rants on this one.
Also, here's the Twitter petition demanding AT&T give existing customers the same deal, with the understanding they are re-upping their contract to another two years from the day of the trade-in. (That one makes total sense to me!).
Nokia's Dumb Price For a Smartphone
Let's put Nokia's new $700 smartphone in its proper context:
Palm launched it's Palm Pre on Saturday for $199. Apple announced it will drop its 8 gig iPhone down to $99 effective immediately, along with releasing its new iPhone 3GS starting at $199 on June 19th.
Reminder: we are in the worst economic downturn since Hoover was in office. People are scared. People are broke. Almost 10% of the population is unemployed. The other 90% are afraid they'll be next.
The pricing commandment is clear: Thou shalt not price a smartphone above $200.
Du-Doh! Nokia just broke that commandment in a big way.
Nokia's new N97 just went on sale for $699. Can you say "salmon"?
File this under the "what were they thinking file?"
Granted, you don't have to sign a two year contract committing yourself to hundreds and hundreds of dollars to a specific carrier. But then again, you buy the phone and then you have to commit to a plan with a carrier anyway if you want to use it.
Nokia clearly is not serious about making major inroads in the U.S. smartphone market, although it dominates just about everywhere else in the world (which is why they likely don't care about us).
This whole mobile device thing is starting to remind me of the automakers.
Nokia's N97 is kind of the Rolls Royce smartphone reserved for people with more money than sense.
Blackberry Storm = Mercedes (S Class)
Blackberry Curve = Mercedes (E Class)
Blackberry Pearl = Mercedes (C Class)
iPhone 3GS 32g = Volkswagen Touareg
iPhone 3GS 16g = Volkswagen Passat
iPhone 3G 8g = Volkswagen Beetle
Palm Pre = Lexus Sedan
Google phone = Honda CRV
Sidekick = Nissan Murano
That's right; no American made analogies.
If U.S. automakers made mobile devices; they would talk about making smartphones and then not do it for another ten years. Their regular joe blow cell phones would be too big, made mostly of plastic and somehow include a cup holder.
GM would advertise theirs as the "dial tone of America", while manufactoring them in China. They would offer 132 different models of the exact same phone. Some of them would be named after planets.
Ford would come out with a retro Gordon Gecko (Michael Douglas from the movie, Wall Street) phone that weighs six pounds and is just a wee bit smaller than a loaf of bread.
Chrysler would manage to shove an airbag or two in their phone casings.
George Clooney would show off his tin- can- and- a- string greenphone at the next Cannes Film Festival. Who cares though? He's still a babe and I would talk to a Campbell's soup can anytime if George was at the other end of the string.
But I digress...
Using Nanotubes to Store Data Forever
A nanotube is a very tiny cylindrical structure that exhibits extraordinary strength
and unique electrical properties.
Researchers at the Department of Energy and the University of California have invented
a mechanism which stores dramatically more data in a smaller space than ever before,
and it is hermetically sealed in such a way as to enable the data to remain valid
for millions of years.
The researchers' original paper (in PDF format) describes how a tiny shuttle can be
moved within the nanotube and positioned to change the resistance of the device allowing
for the storage of either a '1' or a '0'.
Devices using the technology could be available in just a couple of years.
Curt Finch is the author of a project management book and lives in Texas.
The $99 iPhone
This is huge!
At last, someone at Apple finally tuned into CNBC (or better yet, spent some quality time on Main Street listening to real people).
Apple kicked off it's Worldwide Developer's Conference in San Francisco this week with something we've all needed for a long time; lower prices!
Who cares about the next bling bling version of the iPhone; all 32g's of it. Apple is going to keep it's 8g iPhone on the market for an entry level price of $99.
This is huge and not just in the iPhone sense. This will have huge ramifications on the smartphone market.
1. A lot more people will be buying iPhones. A lot of businesses will likely now make the $99 iPhone standard issue with employees.
2. Executives at Palm had two wonderful days since the launch of the Pre on Saturday. Then Black Monday happened. So much for that $199 Palm Pre. Executives at RIM (Blackberry's parent company) are likely popping the Tylenols right about now, as well. Perhaps the next Blackberry should be the Blackberry Curb (as in curb the price below a hundred bucks).
Bottomline: all the other players in the smartphone space are going to have to go sub-$100 to compete. This means smartphones almost overnight are going to be an affordable alternative.
Lingering questions:
1. What will this mean for the meteoric rise of the netbook?
2. What happens when that AT&T exclusivity deal with the iPhone expires? (It can't happen soon enough!)
3. With the first smartphone hitting below $100, will a more stripped down service plan be next?
Stay tuned...
p.s. Apple also lowered the price on its MacBooks. I'm less excited about that. Yes, it's about a 15% price cut. But the cheapest MacBook is still more than a thousand dollars. I remember covering the first sub-$1000 PC notebook back when dinosaurs roamed the earth.
What's For Launch?
Do you hear that big collective gasp (no exhaling yet!)? That's the Apple faithful. This week opens with opening day at Apple's Worldwide Developer's Conference. Rumors, of course, are running rampant of what will or will not happen over the next few days at San Francisco's Moscone Center.
Here are some of the most likely rumors to come true:
1. Steve Jobs is expected to be back on the job by the end of the month. We could see the man in black(turtleneck) this week, however. Let's hope so. It will be good to see him well, again.
2. With Palm Pre hot on it's iTail, we are likely to see a cheaper, stripped down iPhone launched at the show this week.
3. We will likely get a look at the new iPhone 3GS (That "s" is the new part). It won't go on sale until next month. But, we can start salivating now.
Faded rumors include:
1. A Mac netbook?
2. A Mac tablet?
Nah!
Speaking of launch...
Microsoft has a set a finally set a date for the launch of Windows 7. It's October 22nd.
According to a leaked corporate memo, Best Buy plans on offering free upgrades to Windows 7 to any poor schnook that buys a PC after June 26th with the Vista O/S (the free upgrade doesn't apply to Windows XP; then again if you are buying XP you likely aren't in as big a hurry for that upgrade - Meow!).
Do click on the link to that memo. It's a fun read. I especially enjoyed this part:
"Microsoft is launching Windows 7 in mid-October 2009. This new operating system isn't just a "Vista that works" program - it's a new operating system with improved productivity, functionality and creativity that uses less computer resources."
- Best Buy Internal Memo, June 4th, 2009
One other Vista story...
Further evidence that government intelligence is an oxymoron:
The Army has committed itself to a full Vista upgrade by the end of the year. That's right; the military is switching all of its 744,000 PC's to Vista after Windows 7 is released.
Someone please tell the Joint Chiefs of Staff about that Best Buy memo, please. Our men and women in uniform have enough to deal with and shouldn't be subjected to Vista, too.
What will I have to write about when Vista finally takes the long walk into that good night?
Mobile Search Engines of Choice
It truly is 1996 allover again; only this time it's the mobile web instead of the world wide web. Case in point, every other week there seems to be another new search engine (only now it's for mobile searches).
Microsoft launched it's new "live" web search engine, Bing, just days ago it seems. This week it immediately added a mobile version of Bing that isn't half bad.
Google and Yahoo! have their own mobile search engines, of course.
The one you may have not heard of, however, is Taptu.
Of the four, I found that Taptu loads the fastest (a big plus). For iPhone users, keep an eye out for Taptu's new iPhone app launching soon. It's optimized for the touch screen apparantly.
That being said, I like Bing so far. It is the easiest to set for local searches and didn't require a registration. I only had to submit my zip code. Yahoo! and Google, well, were Yahoo! and Google.
The jury is still out on all four. I'll keep you posted as I play some more.
Letting Go Of Paper
Is the dream of a paperless world reallly a dream or more of a nightmare? I think most of us fear the latter and that is probably the biggest reason why it hasn't happened.
Here a few areas many businesses just can't seem to let go:
1. Contracts. Electronic contracts are just as binding as paper contracts and have been under Federal law since 2000.
2. Archived files. Paper files from way back when sit in file cabinets or boxes in storage sheds just waiting to be ruined in the flood or fire. But shelling out the money to scan and organize some scatological approach is not exactly at the top of the budget priority list, is it? Perhaps, its time to at least chuck what is truly chuckable and see what's left to save for the ages in digital form.
3. Snail Mail. Chances are your business still gets mail other than the latest Lillian Vernon catalog. Should you scan it as you get it and throw out the paper or file it? I vote scan as you go.
4. Resumes. See above. Not all resumes are submitted electronically. Perhaps you should consider scanning the hard copy resumes and saving them in a recruiting file on the network somewhere.
Bottomline: I'm not suggesting you can go completely paperless. But, it's a goal worth pursuing to get more aggressive about paring down your paper.
So...
1. Scan it, don't file it.
2. Remember there's more space on your network drive than square footage in your office. Which is cheaper?
3. Two words: fire hazard.
4. One word: decay
5. One other word: green!
I'm just saying!
Twitter Tests Psychic Powers
Thousands of people will be asked in a scientific study this weekend
to investigate their ability to perform 'remote viewing' - a psychic ability
to see what is happening in a remote location in England.
Then they'll be asked to vote on which of several pictures on a website shows
where a person was standing.
If the votes identify a correct location, then supposedly we will have
proved that psychic powers exist.
The University of Hertfordshire is promoting the study.
IF you want to join in you need to follow Richard on Twitter.
Curt is the founder & CEO of a timesheet software company in Austin, Texas.
How Software Companies Get Stimulated
President Obama is pushing billions of dollars of stimulus money into the economy
and software company CEOs (like me) are more than just a little interested in how
they can get a handhold on some of that.
As just one example, $4.5 billion is going to in the direction of smart energy grids.
The CIO of Austin Energy here where I live is certainly doing his part to try to grab
some of that money.
So anyone running a company would be advised to read this article full of tips about how to
get some of that stimulus money.
My favorite advice about hiring salespeople:
Here's a test. Hand that expert a phone, and see if he can get anyone to pick up in Washington.
You can read the complete article here.
Curt Finch is the author of a project management book and lives in Texas.
Stop Putting Off That Mobile Site
Okay, I’ve been writing about this for about two years now. But, now I really mean it. Especially if you are a small, local bricks and mortar business; it is time to get a mobile version of your company web site.
Consider this:
- One in three smartphone users in this country are now using a location-based service at least once a month (weather reports, navigation, restaurant and other business locations, etc.) (According to Compete)
- Compete’s research advises that mobile users are very interested in getting local alerts about discounts, special offers, etc.
- Your competitors have likely not figure this out, yet. This is your chance to beat them to the punch. First come, first served (is that a mixed metaphor?).
Your favorite arguments for NOT getting a mobile web site:
1. It’s the economy stupid. I hear you on that one. But, a mobile web site is not necessarily a huge investment and it just might be the new revenue stream to help lead you out of today’s wilderness.
2. I fell for this back in the 90’s when everyone rushed out to get a company web site. It took years to see a ROI. No guarantees on a mobile site either. But, I will say this; there’s a reason why it’s called the World Wide Web. Yes, most bricks and mortar local businesses have no need for someone in Norway to visit their site. A mobile site, however, may be the only way to reach your potential customers down the street. They aren’t exactly reading the local paper anymore, now are they?
3. It’s cheaper than… local advertising (see above point), direct mailings or cold calling.
4. It’s more effective than… all of the above and the local chamber of commerce.
5. I have a solid customer base, thank you very much. Okay, but how old are they? Are you roping in the youngsters, promising a long life for your company? They live on their mobile devices. They do not live on their snail mail, even e-mail, cable television sets, local papers, etc.
The "Get Smart" Surge Protector
What would Agent 99 say about this one?
I have seen it all now. Some fool has not only invented, but is now marketing a surge protector that doubles as an eavesdropping device.
Huh?
Yes, it's a surge protector with eavesdropping capability. The "SIM Card Spy Reader" is a mere $66 and offers a SIM card you pop into the 8 holer protector, dial a special number via mobile device assigned to that SIM card and then you can listen in remotely within earshot of the, ahem, device.
My question: why a surge protector? Why not a toaster or clock radio or your kid's Webkin plush toy? If you're going to sink to an all-time low, then do it right I say.
Perhaps someone can create a Twitter app that will translate all the juiciest bits to text and then tweet them as they are overheard. Or how about an iPhone app, so that paranoid husbands and bosses can listen in from their bling bling smartphone at the touch of a touch screen.
How silly of me that I thought the Cold War ended 20 years ago. The KGB has nothing on what consumers can do these days.
For employers finding themselves tempted to listen in on employee conversations around the coffee pot in the break room or elsewhere; just remember that if you get caught recruiting will be dicey in the future. Retention may also prove to be a problem. You almost may regret what you hear.
Snoops usually get more than they bargained for in the end.
One can only hope that the eight devices plugged into the surge protector create such a deafening white noise cacophany of electro-hum that you can't hear $%^% anyway.
My respect for the ShamWow just went up exponentially by comparison.
Smartphone Season Kicks Off This Week
It has quickly become a right of summer; Apple launching a new version of the iPhone. This summer will be no exception. What will be different is that it will be one among many new smartphones hitting the market.
In fact, just get used to the words "smartphone" and "launch" in a lot of headlines for awhile.
It's almost like Hollywood's crazy dance of summer movie releases (is it better to release early and accumulate more box office share over several weeks of summer or risk doing a fast fade when some other blockbuster comes out a couple of weeks later?)
I'm sure a lot of executives at both Palm and Sprint are losing a lot of sleep over that same strategy. This week on the sixth is when the much ballyhooed Palm Pre hits Sprint stores everywhere. Sprint has exclusive rights to sell the Pre until the end of the year and they are pulling out all the stops to make the most of it between now and then.
The Palm Pre has been luxuriating in the geek spotlight since last winter's Consumer Electronics Show. Let's just say the early reviews are more than favorable. Let's just say they've been so favorable (hype alert!), Palm's stock has tripled in the months since.
Oh my! No pressure.
Apparantly, it's iPhone wicked cool; but smaller. Palm and Sprint have a lot in common these days. Both companies are feeling a strong chill sitting in the very long shadows of their competitors. In other words, both need to hit one over the back fence really bad.
I'm not sure this will do it.
As mentioned, the latest iPhone is due out soon. Google just let it slip last week at its developer conference that it expects 18 new versions of the Google Android to hit the market between now and the end of the year. Blackberry is expected to release its "Storm 2" before the end of the year, as well.
I'm dizzy.
The fallout of all this is that there will surely be more smartphones in the hands of more U.S. customers.
I'm not sure how Sprint, AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, RIM (Blackberry's parent company), Apple, Palm, Google or Motorola will fare in all of this. But one thing is certain; it's all good for the emerging mobile web and the expansion of a new market and a new way to market for businesses in an otherwise very limited economy.
Non-sequitor item...
Major shout out to my alma mater, the University of Texas and Boston College.
Saturday night/Sunday morning; the two teams dueled long into the night playing a record 25 inning game. It started at 6pm and ended after 1am.
(Texas ultimately won, of course; 3-2)
Both teams not only played hard; but played well. Most importantly, they played like gentlemen honoring their opponents' stamina and the comraderie of sharing a moment in baseball history.
In that, there were no losers; only winners.
We could all learn something from the example set by these young men.
I might add that my Austin bureau chief and boots on the ground, "Z" was actually there for all 25 innings. Cool! Beats my weekend in Connecticut.
