February 2008
Zwei CeBIT-Karten abzugeben
by Volker Weber
Habe zwei CeBIT-Karten abzugeben. Spart 38 Euro an der Kasse. Bitte nur, wer wirklich hin will. Die ersten beiden Kommentare gewinnen.
Google Sites: bringing it all together
by Volker Weber
Meet Google Sites, the newest addition to the Google Apps product suite. It was designed to allow you to easily create a network of sites and share them with whomever you choose. Google Sites lets you pull together information from across Google Apps by embedding documents, spreadsheets, presentations, videos, and calendars in your sites.
R8. Wrooom wrooom.
by Volker Weber
Thanks for letting me drive your R8 tonight, Wolfgang.
Nearly a million users, and no spam or trolls
by Volker Weber
Russell makes a good observation:
Think about any other online community system ever created - from Usenet to The WELL, IRC to Slashdot to Digg. All of them have had to deal with the core problem of idiots on the Internet. Slashdot's extended karma system, or IRCs multiple moderation commands, Digg's diggs, etc. are all about filtering out the assholes. It's a fact - anytime a virtual group gets to a certain size, the morons come and start doing their best to disrupt, defraud or degrade the audience.
Twitter, however, has almost a million members, a thriving community, lots of discussions and yet doesn't have spam or troll issues. If you step back for a second and think about it, that's pretty amazing.
I don't use Twitter nearly as much as I should.
Mixed Tape 19 is out
by Volker Weber
Mercedes is back with music TV. But you still get your free downloads. 10 new tracks, every 8 weeks. Which is a good thing. ;-)
You have two more days
by Volker Weber
You only have two more days to visit our current sponsor. Then I will try something new. Will you notice? ;-)
Unmistakably German?
by Volker Weber
[Thanks, Schweppes]
Duffbert delivers
by Volker Weber
When Duffbert wrote this review I said to him "I have to have this". He promised to bring the book to Dublin. Surprise, surprise, it was in the mail today. Thank you, Duffbert!
The gap is closing fast on ILUG 2008 opportunities
by Volker Weber
This is the current roster of sponsors for the 2008 ILUG conference in Dublin. You will find at least one company missing, but they are not known to be fast. ;-) As you can see, there are some spots open, but not many. Make your move.
If you would like to register as a delegate, it's also time to get going. Most of the seats are gone already, and the registration has only been open for two days. If you do register, makes sure you also show up. This is a free conference, but you are taking away somebody else's seat if you stay away. You will be punished - the 2007 no-shows cannot get a confirmed seat in 2008. They are automatically waitlisted.
vowe.net back to normal
by Volker Weber
1&1 moved my site to a new platform yesterday. For a few hours vowe.net was broken. They first had to convert the database, and then my quota was exceeded. After I removed the database backup things are back to normal.
Finally installed the Sonos Web Controller
by Volker Weber
Sonos players and controllers talk a pretty simple protocol for UPnP media devices. Andy Wick has taken up the task to write a Sonos Web Controller in Perl which emulates a web server. Install on any Perl enabled device on your network and you have a controller you can reach from your mobile phone. The screenshot up there shows the controller with the iSonos skin on a Nokia E90.
The Web Controller is an amazing tool, but it does not come close to the real thing. There is however one huge advantage. Sonos players and controllers have to be in the same subnet. If you install the Web Controller in that subnet, it serves as a relay. With the correct port forwarding you can reach the Web Controller from the Internet. Don't know why you would want to play something when you are not at home, but I like to pretend I am home once in a while when I am not. :-)
Same thing on iPhoney, an iPhone emulator and on the real thing:
Sonos Controller and Player Bundle
by Volker Weber
Sonos has a new offering, and marketing has muddied the waters with SAVE SAVE SAVE statements. Here is an overview with the new bundles in bold letters:
The Controller is the expensive part of the Sonos system. Depending on how many players you buy, you essentially get the Controller marked down from 400 all the way down to 150.
I think the reason for this new offering is the Squeezebox Duet. It also comes in a one controller/one player configuration. It does cost significantly less, but I have no idea if it's up to the task.
Update: Sonos just called and told me the new bundle is unrelated to the Duet. Dang, and I thought it was a pretty good idea. ;-)
If you want to buy a Macbook, today is a good day
by Volker Weber
Apple has just refreshed the MacBook (13" white/black) and the MacBook Pro (15" and 17"). Faster, more memory, larger hard disks, MultiTouch on the MacBook Pro). No design changes though.
New toy: Tivoli Audio Model ONE
by Volker Weber
vowe's magic flying circus is mostly digital. But once in a while I enjoy analog equipment like a mechanical watch, a good engine, or in this case a fine radio. Yesterday I was able to buy a Tivoli Audio Model ONE which had been returned to the store and was sold at a discount. It's a fine piece of equipment with a very basic UI. One switch, a frequency dial and a volume knob. Not only does it tune in on a wide selection of radio channels with nothing but its internal antenna, it also sounds quite nice for such a small box.
We have another DominoWiki
by Volker Weber
There used to be one DominoWiki. Now we have another one. Actually, it existed before, but then it was called the Lotus Domino Best Practices Wiki. Actually it should have been the IBM Lotus Domino Best Practices Wiki or ILDBPW all along. Now it has been rebranded Domino Wiki, and I have also seen it referred to as DominoWiki, which there can only be one of. Maybe IBM could call it the Domino "Wiki", for obvious reasons. ;-)
Google Mail - monster animated version
by Volker Weber
Study on Exchange and Notes/Domino support staff sizes
by Volker Weber
David Ferris of Ferris Research is conducting a study on support staff sizes for Exchange and Notes/Domino. If you can supply data about your own company, head on over to his site and get in touch. All participants get the results, so you know where you are standing.
Unzusammenhängende Beobachtungen beim Autofahren
by Volker Weber
- Wenn man wenig fährt, sollte man doch mal nach den Reifendruck schauen. Rundum ein halbes bar mehr, und schon fährt das Auto wieder geradeaus.
- Polo mit linkem grünen und rotem rechten Außenspiegel gesehen. Das stört den Seemann. Irgendwie fährt das Schiffchen rückwärts.
- Super plus kostet jetzt einsfuffzich. Das waren mal drei Magg. Meine Fresse. Wie gut, siehe Punkt 1.
- Viel bekloppter als in Darmstadt kann man Ampeln nicht schalten. Sagte mal ein Frankfurter: Wenn die Darmstädter einen erst mal haben, lassen sie ihn nicht gerne wieder gehen.
- Firmenwagenfahrer geben das Hirn an der Tankstelle zur Aufbewahrung ab. All inclusive.
Zurückgeblitzt
by Volker Weber
Geblitzter blitzt zurück und macht den Zeugen unglaubwürdig. Nette Freitagsgeschichte.
[via Robert]
Distribution SNAFU
by Volker Weber
Imagine you have two websites for distributing your software to partners and customers. Now you come out with a free add-on product that only works with your latest server, and actually only on one of the supported operating systems. And which can only be obtained through those two servers. Since you want to ask your partners and customers a few questions about the add-on, you design a new process, which turns out to be completely broken. There are credible reports that select partners and customers have not received their permission to download 48 hours after asking for it.
What do you think will happen with a file that is small enough to be sent around with freemail accounts like GMail in a community that prides itself for helping each other?
[Putting on my flame retardant underwear]
New poll: what do you think about Microsoft's new openness
by Volker Weber
Yesterday Microsoft announced it will open up protocol specifications and APIs for many products and improve support for open standards and interoperability with open source software. What do you think about Microsoft's new openness?
- It's a good thing
- Step in the right direction
- Close but no cigar
- Smoke and mirrors
The results:
Traveler or traveller, which is right?
by Volker Weber
Single or double l. Is that an American vs proper English difference?
Schnell zusammengeschraubt
by Volker Weber
Microsoft Most Valuable Professional Michael Greth (hey der Titel ist länger als der Name und er führt ihn auch) stellte gestern auf der SharePoint-Konferenz eine Website vor, die er an einem Tag unter Zuhilfenahme anderer Arbeitsergebnisse zusammengeklopft hat: sharepointlive.tv. Drei Dinge fand ich bemerkenswert:
- Die gute Beherrschung der 52. Ferengi-Regel. "Ich weiß nicht, wie man das macht, aber das gibt es ja alles im Internet".
- Wie einfach man in SharePoint Designer mal schnell ein paar Parameter aus einem RSS-Feed herausklauben kann.
- Wie lausig schlecht Qik ist. Man schaue sich einfach mal das Archiv an.
You are so on my blacklist
by Volker Weber
This email is being sent to you as a Nikon customer. To ensure your email filter does not block messages from us, please add our 'From' address (nikon@nikon.net) to your Address Book. Please do not reply to this email; for support or questions visit www.nikonusa.com
"Dear customers, your feedback will be disregarded. But we are happy to stuff your mailbox." Where do they teach that? Marketing 101, a.k.a. lobotomy?
Amazing panorama of the Airbus 380 flight deck
by Volker Weber
You have to see this: a panorama of the Airbus 380 flight deck. And Gilles has more >
[Merci, Claude]
Sync Lotus Notes with iCal and Address Book on the Mac
by Volker Weber
If it works as advertised, this program is going to make a lot of Notes users on the Mac very, very happy. For $25 PocketMac GoBetween for Lotus Notes will sync all of your Lotus Notes PIM data to iCal and Address Book. You can then run iSync to sync iCal and Address Book to your mobile device. And it works both ways, you can add/change/delete data in iCal/Address Book, in Notes, on your device and still keep all of them in sync.
Notes & Domino 8.0.1 out tomorrow
by Volker Weber
As announced at Lotusphere, Notes and Domino 8.0.1 are about to be released tomorrow. What's new:
- More than a thousand bugs fixed (that's not in the press release)
- Lotus Notes Widgets to accessorize your desktop
- Domino Web Access Lite, optimized for small bandwidth, generally desirable even on faster wires, not for the iPhone though as teased at Lotusphere
- Lotus Notes Traveler, push mail and PIM for Windows Mobile, not strictly in 8.0.1, "eligible users may request entitlement to download a new wireless e-mail option" here > (note the "swg-lnt10beta" in the URL)
[via Ed]
Balls of Steel (Requiem for a TV News Career)
by Volker Weber
CNN fires producer for blogging. Producer fires back.
[via Mike]
If you think nobody wants SharePoint, think again
by Volker Weber
Launch event for Windows Server 2008, SQL Server 2008 and Visual Studio 2008 combined with the SharePoint Konferenz 2008 in Frankfurt draws a crowd of 7500 customers and partners. Sold out for months, this event has been the largest I have seen in Germany.
The photo shows an overfilled breakout session in a room which was way too small. Organization of the event is a mess. Session schedule does not contain track numbers or rooms. Rooms are designated by tracks numbers. Catering was running out of plates and cutlery, PA announcements are way too loud. Best backpack so far though. ;-) And each visitor gets a full version of all announced products.
Another photo from Wednesday in a larger room:
Warum Taxis rasen und warten
by Volker Weber
Wieder was gelernt:
Würde der Taxilenker nun langsam auf eine rote Ampel zurollen, um treibstoffsparend möglichst ohne anzuhalten durchfahren zu können, würde er nur den Tarif für die Wegstrecke verdienen. Rast er jedoch dieselben Meter, um dann möglichst lange zu warten, kassiert er doppelt: einmal für die Strecke und dann noch einmal für das Warten. Die Gesamtreisezeit bleibt in den allermeisten Fällen dieselbe. Der Fahrgast hat also keinen Zeitgewinn, sondern eine ungemütliche Fahrt und eine höhere Rechnung.
Hin und weg
by Volker Weber
zoomer.de. Hin. Und wieder weg. Überzeugt mich nicht. Langversion hier >
ready.for.take.off
by Volker Weber
Morgen zwei Veranstaltungen: Launch 2008 und Deutsche SharePoint Konferenz 2008
Schuldenfrei
by Volker Weber
"Ich konnte es nicht mehr hören, dass es normal ist, wenn eine Stadt bis zur Halskrause verschuldet ist", sagt Langenfelds Bürgermeister Magnus Staehler. Er hat den Kampf gegen den Schuldenberg aufgenommen.
Das Ergebnis: Die 60 000-Einwohner-Stadt zwischen Düsseldorf und Köln wird im Oktober schuldenfrei sein. Auch Dank des Engagements der Bürger.
Ich hätte nicht gedacht, dass es sowas noch gibt.
Another 1000 km with the TomTom GO 720T
by Volker Weber
Last week I was able to clock another 1000 km on the TomTom 720T. Here is the good, the bad and the ugly:
The good: The device gets a fix in seconds after you switch it back on. It's very easy to set your destination, routing and re-routing is very quick. Driving instructions are timely and clear.
The bad: TMCpro was useless. The device warned me of a monster traffic jam with expected delays of seven hours. It was unable to select the "normal" route once it had the traffic data, even after removing the receiver. I switched if off, followed my usual route and the traffic jam had completely cleared when we got there. Actually, the road was almost deserted, most likely because other cars were routed elsewhere. On the way back the device also insisted on leaving the Autobahn at some point to take a side road only to re-enter the Autobahn some 20 km later; and that was without the TMCpro receiver. I also ignored this suggestion.
The ugly: Before going on this trip, I had updated my map and the device software. Then I decided to do the same for my neighbor, who has a TomTom ONE. The Mac software asked me whether I wanted to switch the device and then did not let me switch back to my TomTom GO, explaining that I can only do this once every six months. TomTom promised to resolve the matter, but they were unable to do so within one week. Simple solution: create another account. I now have three different accounts and I intend to create many more if I run into any of those DRM issues again.
Nokia E71 spied
by Volker Weber
cnet Asia has a picture of the E61i successor E71. This phone is going to be a lot smaller than its predecessors.
[Update: the picture appears to be fake.]
IBM has made the Lotusphere podcasts available for download
by Volker Weber
I have no idea whether they do this on purpose but IBM has made the podcasts available on the internet. This is how it works:
http://event.on24.com/utilApp/Podcast
?eventid=102717
&sessionid=01
&key=3043868696BA844FEC1D83CB4C673308
&download=y
Put it all on one line, start with sessionid 01 and then work you way to 02 and so on. I leave it as an exercise to the reader to complete the task. :-)
Painted green
by Volker Weber
Jan sent me this mail footer:
Please don't print this e-mail unless you really need to.
It's so easy to paint yourself green. Not that you are green, but it shows how much effort you are investing in appearing green.
Bildblog hat Stufe drei erreicht
by Volker Weber
First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.
Der Axel-Springer-Verlag geht gegen die "Bild"-kritische Internetseite "Bildblog" vor. Der Medienkonzern will nach SPIEGEL-Informationen durchsetzen, dass die Betreiber grundsätzlich keine Beschwerden mehr beim Deutschen Presserat einreichen dürfen.
Sugar and olive oil
by Volker Weber
It is always the simple things in excellent quality that are the best presents. Thank you, Alper.
Should IBM open source Traveler?
by Volker Weber
There is some discussion at Ed's about the fact that Lotus Traveler only supports Windows Mobile. Some of the comments insinuate that Exchange also only supports Windows Mobile, which simply isn't true. Exchange uses the ActiveSync protocol, which a few other companies have licensed from Microsoft. Thus you can have Exchange "push" mail on Nokia S60 and selected Palm Treo devices.
So far IBM has not committed to any other platforms, but my understanding is that at least Symbian is in the works. Since IBM likes to see itself as a supporter of open source and open protocols, maybe they should release a protocol specification for the communication between the Traveler Domino server task and the device. Since Traveler is a free (and separate) download and IBM is not asking for a license fee, they could also entertain the idea of releasing the current version as open source to make it easier for others to write a sync agent for their mobile operating system. What do you think?
Final proof that marketing does not employ engineers
by Volker Weber
Looks like I am behind on my reading
by Volker Weber
I have been away for a week, and now I need to catch up. Update: Much better now:
Just right
by Volker Weber
Do you know this feeling when everything is just right? Yesterday we had this moment in life. After a successful conference day at the edcom Nachlese LCTY event in Munich, we were enjoying a most delicious six course dinner at the Master's Home. And then Chip played the guitar and Irene was singing. And everything was just right. Life can be so beautiful.
Speedcabling
by Volker Weber
Speedcabling is a competitive sport created by steven schkolne in which contestants race to unravel a bundle of wires.
[Thanks, Nick]
Mac OS X 10.5.2 is out
by Volker Weber
Translation from marketing speech to plain english
by Volker Weber
First we need to set the stage: Cessna has announced a new gear called SkyCatcher. Lots of positive comments on the Cessna blog. Until they announced where the Skycatcher is going to be built: Shenyang Aircraft Corporation, Peoples Republic of China ... and then hell broke lose.
Marketing was in shock. Blog comments don't have to be positive? Holy cow! So the company issued a statement which we translate to plain english:
Important Changes to the SkyCatcher Site (January 25, 2008)
First off, we would like to personally thank everyone who has joined the conversation about our new Cessna SkyCatcher. Your comments and opinions surrounding this bold new venture are extremely valuable to us and especially as first flight gets closer.
As the excitement builds, our site has also evolved. We’ve implemented new methods and editorial protocols to better facilitate communication.
No more free speech.
At the same time, we’ve added a new site feature that will include all of the very latest SkyCatcher product updates. This section is called e-Briefs.
We have shut down the blog.
Here’s how the site works: we now invite you to submit your comment to our site editors for consideration of online posting, much like traditional publishing.
Everything will be censored.
This will give us a better opportunity to respond with our own comments on a more regular basis. You can rest assured that views representative of all sides of an issue will be chosen for display on the site by our editorial staff.
Critical comments are not welcome.
Base jumping with wingsuits in Norway
by Volker Weber
Those guys won't need a retirement plan.
Win a free Sonos
by Volker Weber
Cheesy campaign, but hey, you can win a Sonos Bundle. Since they are not asking for "Country", only Americans need to apply.
[Thanks, Ben]
Pogue puts Apple, Google, Sonos, and RIM on the same map
by Volker Weber
But you don't have to have an M.B.A. to understand that refusing to compromise on design, for any reason, can lead to fantastic commercial success. Look at Apple, Google, Sonos, R.I.M. (makers of the BlackBerry), or (in its glory days) Palm.
Not a residency for not writing a Redbook, instead writing not a Wiki
by Volker Weber
As we have discussed numerous times, Lotus unlike the rest of IBM has stopped working on Redbooks. Since Redbooks are excellent documentation, written by experts from the field, people were, shall I say, disappointed.
At Lotusphere Lotus made in perfectly clear, that Redbooks are not coming back. Instead, Lotus wants to publish this information online. Shorter publishing cycles, better updates, ...
Good news: IBM has the first residency for this new way of publishing. However, it changes more than just the publishing media.
Lotus Redbooks were written by getting people to Boston, and having them work on the book for four to six weeks. You had access to experts, servers, and other stuff you needed to get your work done. Lotus paid for travel expenses, but not for your work.
Under the new rules Lotus has created something they call "remote residency". Which means you are not travelling but instead working from home. What you are writing will not be published as a book but instead as something IBM calls a Wiki, without any Wiki features so far.
The new rules will save IBM the travel expenses they had to pay before. Authors don't have to travel, but will miss the opportunities to work in a different environment. They are still working for free, so IBM plans to make their contributions recognized.
This will be interesting to watch. Will IBM succeed in their new crowd-sourcing? Will they be able to attract the right experts? Will IBM customers like the new online ressources as they did the Redbooks?
Obsession
by Volker Weber
Bruce writes (and gets beat up):
I was poking around on the fabulous PlanetLotus.org today and ran across this interesting statistic: Microsoft is one of the top keywords in blog posts. For a site and community dedicated to all things Lotus I find we spend way too much time talking about Microsoft.
An unhealthy obsession indeed.
Geek blockbuster
by Volker Weber
You have to see this ... :-)
New headphones: Sony MDR-V700DJ
by Volker Weber
John sent me these headphones from the UK via DHL and they were here within a day. Wow.
I have wanted these for a long time. They are very bulky, so you don't want to wear them for hours on end. But they do fit my pretty large head (size 8, or 64cm) and they have some characteristics which make them fit for DJing: excellent bass performance, swivel earcups which are also reversible. They also need just one milliwatt to put out 107 db. Which can make for a very funny combination: bulky headphones and tiny iPod nano. The plug is larger than the iPod. ;-)
One item scratched from my wishlist. Thank you, John. Much appreciated.
Apple is hiring
by Volker Weber
And the winner is ...
by Volker Weber
I took three mobiles to Lotusphere I admit that is pretty nerdy. All of them had WiFi. A BlackBerry, a Nokia smartphone and an iPhone. They were all loaded, with a GSM chip and ready to go. But I have only used one: the iPhone.
These are the applications I needed:
- eMail: that is an easy one. All of the devices can do that, and the BlackBerry is the best bar none. The iPhone works, but a BlackBerry outruns it. The Nokia is fine, but much much slower.
- Photo album: the iPhone leaves everything else in the dust. The others don't even come close.
- Weather: very decent widget on the iPhone. Gets the job done quickly. Nothing to write home about on the other two.
- Stocks: same thing as weather. There was a huge slide while we were in Orlando and it was good to have that information handy.
- Twitter: works well on all devices. BlackBerry has a fat client, but the browser apps on the iPhone are great. I did not check it as often as I thought I would.
- Google maps: best on the iPhone but have not used it at all. I know my way around Lotusphere and the area around it quite well by now.
- Instant messaging: I am on Skype when at home, but hardly on the go. No need to walk around with a device in front of your face. :-)
The iPhone wins hands down. eMail is not on par with BlackBerry, but good enough. The widgets are nice. But the photo album was the final push. Interestingly enough I have not used the iPhone as an iPod even once. I still carried a "real" iPod with excellent battery life and a standard headset plug.
You may not know this yet, but ...
by Volker Weber
... you really want to sponsor the ILUG 08 event in Dublin. There is no better opportunity to present your stuff to a few hundred Lotus alpha geeks. Audience last year was pan-European with strong contingents from Germany, Ireland and the UK. The conference is free for the attendees, and your contribution will make it all possible.
Too dangerous
by Volker Weber
LONDON (Reuters) - Amy Winehouse, who entered a rehab clinic last month for drug addiction, will not perform as planned at this year's Grammy awards ceremony after the U.S. embassy in London rejected her visa application.
She can be nominated for six Grammys but actually letting her on American soil is just too dangerous.
Mordac is going to hate this
by Volker Weber
Google Apps. Provisioned by users. Mordac is going to hate this.
Great reading to start the day
by Volker Weber
Translation From PR-Speak to English of Selected Portions of Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang’s Company-Wide Memo Regarding the Microsoft Takeover Bid
Wir können alles. Außer Hochdeutsch.
by Volker Weber
[via Alex]
Ausverkauft
by Volker Weber
Ich stecke gerade in den Vorbereitungen für die edcom Nachlese Lotusphere Comes To You (lcty.de - wie cool ist das denn, Felix?), da erreicht mich eine knackige Mail:
Das ist eine sehr gute Nachricht. Die Nachlese ist eine Qualitätsveranstaltung, die mit großem Aufwand betrieben wird. Edcom schickt jedes Jahr Referenten nach Orlando, die das dort gesehene aufbereiten und bewerten. Bei der Veranstaltung wird nicht einfach nur die IBM-Linie bejubelt, sondern durchaus kritisch beleuchtet.
Zusätzlich schickt IBM die besten Leute, um die Neuigkeiten zu präsentieren: Ron Sebastian, der die meisten Demos in Orlando vorführt, Chip Carter, verantwortlich für Domino Admin, Irene Ros mit einem neuen Admin Tool. Dazu aus Deutschland Ralph Siepmann, endlich wieder Robert Schneider, den für Composite Applications zuständigen Niklas Heidloff und den SAP-Spezialisten Christian Holsing, der was zur Architektur der in Kooperation mit SAP entstehenden Lösung erzählen kann. Das sind keine Powerpoint-Jockeys, sondern Leute, die mitten im Geschäft stehen.
Ich freue mich auf diese nun schon zum vierten Mal stattfindende Veranstaltung. Es ist schön, wenn sich Qualität durchsetzt.
PS: Ausverkauft heißt ausverkauft. Es gibt aber noch einen "Trostpreis" in Düsseldorf. Ein Teil der Truppe reist ins Rheinland und singt dort noch einmal.
Nerdcore: Dateiformatmarketingporno
by Volker Weber
Der ganz normale Wahnsinn:
Von einem PDF nen Screenshot machen, den in Word platzieren, das DOC in Excel importieren und das Excel-File in eine Powerpoint-Präsentation schmeißen. Das dann per Mail verschicken mit den Worten "Mach mir da mal ein JPG draus, bitte". So arbeiten Marketing-Leute.
Apple Adds New iPhone & iPod touch Models
by Volker Weber
CUPERTINO, California—February 5, 2008 — Apple today added new models of the iPhone and iPod touch which have double the memory, doubling the amount of music, photos and videos that customers can carry with them wherever they go. The revolutionary iPhone now comes in a new 16GB model for $499, joining the 8GB model for $399. iPod touch now comes in a 32GB model for $499, joining the 16GB model for $399 and the 8GB model for $299.
Quote of the day
by Volker Weber
I watched Juno today. Great movie, but don't even think about watching it when dubbed in your own language. Nice quote:
Juno: I just need to know if it's possible for two people to stay happy together forever, or at least for a few years.
Mac: [...] In my opinion, the best thing you can do is to find a person who loves you for exactly who you are. Good mood, bad mood, ugly, pretty, handsome, what have you, the right person will still think that the sun shines out your ass. That's the kind of person that's worth sticking with.
I am not sure whether "loves" is the right word. But the general concept is right. Stop acting.
How stupid can this possibly get?
by Volker Weber
Can I have breakfast now?
by Volker Weber
CeBIT kann kommen
by Volker Weber
developerWorks: Develop iPhone Web applications with Eclipse
by Volker Weber
Learn to create iPhone Web sites using Eclipse, Aptana's iPhone Development plug-in, and the iUi framework. See the development of a Javadoc viewer for the iPhone, uncover tips for user interface design, and hear about the future of iPhone application development.
[Thanks, Bruce]
Cicero: Wir sind dann mal fort
by Volker Weber
Während wir endlos über die Extreme von oben (Topmanager und deren Gier) und unten (Mindestlohn-Empfänger und gewalttätige Migrationsjugendliche) diskutieren, vollzieht sich ein Bruch der Gesellschaft in der Mitte. Man erörtert über Jahre, wie man den Wohlstandskuchen noch ein bisschen gerechter verteilen könnte, doch unterdessen flüchten diejenigen aus der Küche, die den Kuchen backen sollen. Unser Problem sind nicht 100 maßlose Manager oder 100000 türkische Familien in vermeintlicher Armut. Es sind die Millionen der Mittelschicht, die die Gesellschaft tragen, sich aber von ihr zusehends weniger getragen fühlen. Sie zahlen immer höhere Abgaben, erleben Wohlstandsverluste, werden bevormundet, müssen ihre Kinder in schlechte Schulen schicken und werden dem Wettbewerbsdruck der Globalisierung mit viel weniger Schutz ausgesetzt als die ganz unten und ganz oben.
Best headline of the day
by Volker Weber
Bam! Borg makes Yahoo its bitch.
Bob Balaban leaves IBM to work as VP of R&D at Binary Tree
by Volker Weber
Some of you saw this coming. And this time it was Rocky who dropped the hint.
I came back from Lotusphere with a new job. That's right, as of January 29, I have resigned my position at IBM. My new job is Vice President of R & D at Binary Tree. I'm real excited about jumping in to a great company that I'm already familiar with (they were one of my first customers back in 1997/98 when I left Iris the first time, and started Looseleaf Software). My last day as an IBM employee will be Friday, Feb. 8
Congratulations, Bob. But I have this nagging feeling that one day you will once again work for Google, IBM or Microsoft. Binary Tree has excellent migration tools. :-)
You may also want to revisit Bob's post of April 2007. Somebody else will have to do this job now.
Phil Factor's Phrenetic Phoughts: Microsoft Boy announces his School Homework
by Volker Weber
Continuing in our series of attempts to imagine how Microsoft Marketing people relate to their fellow men outside work, we give you a glimpse of Microsoft Boy at school, before the start of his splendid career at Redmond.
Feel free to replace Microsoft with your favorite vendor. This pretty much works for marketing folks everywhere.
[Thanks, Gana]
Gartner Highlights Key Predictions for IT Organisations and Users in 2008 and Beyond
by Volker Weber
I don't believe at all that Gartner analysts are able to predict the future. But I find this prediction quite interesting:
By 2011, Apple will double its U.S. and Western Europe unit market share in Computers. Apple's gains in computer market share reflect as much on the failures of the rest of the industry as on Apple's success. Apple is challenging its competitors with software integration that provides ease of use and flexibility; continuous and more frequent innovation in hardware and software; and an ecosystem that focuses on interoperability across multiple devices (such as iPod and iMac cross-selling).
