Category Archives: Products

Products, Technology

The importance of context in profiles…

The Google Operating System blog has a good list of Google type of predictions for 2008.

Predictions for Google’s 2008

However, in point one ther’s this…

“If Google doesn’t understand that your Gmail contacts aren’t necessarily your friends, we’ll see a huge privacy backslash.”

How difficult can this be to understand? And why hasn’t Facebook realised it already? I want to present different views of myself to different populations; it’s not rocket science.

The first network that gets this right will have a massive advantage over the others.

France, News, Products, UK, US

BusinessWeek: Top 100 Global Brands

1 Comment

It’s time for the annual nonsense list of brands…

BusinessWeek Online: Top 100 Global Brands

Some quick notes;

  • There are no valuable brands in China, India or anywhere outside the western world. I’m sure that Tata, Wipro, Mittal, Haier, CIC and a few others would beg to disagree.
  • When they saw that the Microsoft brand is worth 58 billon dollars, what does it get Microsoft?
    • Since when has anyone bought a product just because it was a Microsoft product?
    • Can these companies lauch into new markets because of the strength of their brand? No. Microsoft has spent a fortune getting over the brand name in video games; Coke has trouble getting out the black sugered water market and Nescafe isn’t going to start selling anything but coffee.

From here the list looks like the Top 100 middle American brands that mean something to the baby boomers.

IT, Products, Technology

Enterprise Software Too Boring: Oh do come along…

SmoothSpan has a good review of the spat that Scoble has created around his comments about ERP software not being sexy. You read Scoble’s comments here.

SmoothSpan does a good job of defending the ERP cause pointing out that this is probably because Scoble doesn’t know enough about ERP software. But that misses the larger point…

Most of the products that bloggers and journalists are reviewing they know little about and don’t understand the user case for.

A good example of this is the Kindle that was the subject of last week’s blog battle started by Scoble. Most of the people that wrote the Kindle off are not big book readers. They are big PC users and didn’t understand why anyone would need an eBook.

If you’re in front of your PC all day why would you need a Kindle? Doesn’t mean that there is no market for the product, just that you’re not part of it.

Back to ERPs. Most A-list bloggers work in small organizations or are freelance. Why should they see the benefits of an ERP? Any freelance that installs an ERP is mad; however it doesn’t mean that it isn’t useful software.

IT, LeWeb3, Products, Technology

Fon does it right again!!!

I love Fon, I got my first router via LeWeb3 last year and it’s been on in my appartment ever since. I’ve also had great fun giving invitations to friends in three different countries.

Then they go and do this for Christmas…

SEASONS GREETINGS

WE’RE GIVING YOU THREE FREE FON ROUTERS TO CELEBRATE THIS HOLIDAY SEASON OF SHARING!

Fantastic idea! I’m now having fun deciding who I’m going to give them to.

IT, LeWeb3, OLPC, Podcasting, Products

OLPC vs. Intel podcast

Joho the Blog pointed out that TwiT came up with gold this week.

Last week I started questioning why I spend an hour a week listening to Twit and then this comes along, this has to be one of the best Podcasts I’ve heard in a long while.

Just shows what a fantastic media it can be when done right.

PS – Joho will also be speaking at LeWeb3. I’m starting to get excited!!!

LeWeb3, Podcasting, Products

Dave Winer is wrong (for once)

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Specifically about podcasting (Scripting News)

Every six months or so Dave Winer tells us that the iPod isn’t a good podcast player and that we need to build a new one. The wish-list is always roughly the same and it’s always Open Source.

An Open Source podcast player; the ideal toy for developers, a mobile developer platform.

First, I’ve nothing against the idea, in fact, I think that it would be great.

However, it wouldn’t promote the development of podcasting. The issue with podcasting is finding things that are worth listening to. I don’t have trouble teaching my mother to use an iPod but getting her to subscribe to a feed is impossible.

The solution to the podcasting isn’t the device, it’s the guide.

PS – Dave, if you want to scream at me, see you next Tuesday at LeWeb3!

PPS – While I’m on the subject, why is the iTunes store so difficult to use? It’s impossible to browse for music. It’s fantastic once you know what you’re looking for but I don’t know what I’m looking for!!!

IT, LeWeb3, Products

PC? iFon!

iPhone? iFon!

Fon have a great application out for the iPhone, it allows you to connect to open Fon connections while out roaming.

In the comments people are already asking for the Windows Mobile version; yes please!

Why don’t they have this for Windows and Macs; that would save having to always log in using the web pages.