Graphical News February 19, 2009

Some friends of mine were discussing the demise of the newspaper as we know it. It’s a complicated issue. Journalists must be paid by someone to get the news and report it. Newspapers have to make money. They cannot continue to give away their inventory. One of the solutions is the micro payment technology that keeps promising but fails to deliver. The survival of news appears to be at stake. Would you be willing to pay 1 cent per hit of a page? What if that hit lasted a week so you could revisit the story for 7 days without any additional charge?

One of the comments that was also made is that newspapers provide a graphical representation of the news, at least from the perspective of the editor.  A newspaper page is laid out i a particular manner and one’s eyes naturally drift from one story to another placing a value on stories based on their position or size. This is lost on the computer screen where the main story is front and center, and other stories are links on the side with no particualr importance placed on any of the stories. On one hand, this is cool, since the reader is left to make their own judgement. On the other hand, the news becomes a large morass of information that is hard to wade through.

A few years ago, a company called Marumushi came out with the concept of creating a graphical representation of the news. The project was launched in 2004, with details outlined on their project page.

The newsmap site is now my home page:

http://marumushi.com/apps/newsmap/newsmap.cfm

Microsoft to Opens Retail Stores February 14, 2009

The news services are abuzz with news that Microsoft is planning to open their own retail stores. Emotions appear to be mixed as to whether this is a good idea or not, with most coming out against the idea.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20090213.wgtmsft0213/BNStory/Technology/home

In a related article, today’s Globe and Mail discusses the health of retail stores based on their inventory levels. (http://snipurl.com/bvkfa  [www_theglobeandmail_com] ).

What exactly does Microsoft intend to sell in these stores? While most people think of Microsoft as the company that makes Windows and Office, they actually make a whole host of products including hardware and software. The one thing they do not make is computers. They just make stuff that runs on other people’s computers. And the stuff they make is available pretty much everywhere, from online to offline sources. 

Microsoft is in a tail spin. Their ideas are far from novel. They keep following paths blazed by others. But there is nothing new in this. DOS was not theirs, nor was Windows, or Office, or just about anything else they have come up with. Even their internet ventures are lacking. They are geniuses at marketing, but even that seems to be waning.

They have the money, they have the people with brains gallore, all they seem to be lacking is the vision to move forward in a particular direction. Small stuff.

Opening stores is a bad idea for Microsoft. Time for a reboot, something Windows users are only too familiar with.

******

An interesting article that supports Microsoft in their new ventture:

http://snipurl.com/bzgzl  [blogs_eweek_com]

Amazon and IBM Join Forces February 13, 2009

One of the biggest challenges facing Cloud Computing is the interoperation of the data. Applications like Microsoft Office have allowed us to use information stored in Outlook to create a letter in Word. We can insert spreadsheets in Word documents linking back to the original. Double Click on the spreadhseet and Excel opens. Cool.

But Cloud Computing does not give us that luxury. In most cases, your data sits in disparate locations, never the twain to meet. Wanna create a letter from your eMail program, copy and paste it. Sounds simple. Maybe for one letter. What about a mail merge? Ouch.

But Amazon and IBM have now joined forces. (http://news.cnet.com/8301-1001_3-10163603-92.html?tag=nl.e433). In case you do not know, Amazon does more than sell books. For years now, they have been providing the backend data storage for a number of companies providing us with online storage, backup, or data sharing services. IBM has been making a lot of noise about the Cloud. Their latest foray being the collaboration site: https://www.lotuslive.com/. And finally, two giants have joined forces ushering in, hopefully, more cooperation between Cloud Computing initiatives.

The Cloud February 13, 2009

There has been a lot of talk about Cloud Computing. The situation in which your applications and data reside on the web freeing you from the hassles of buying, downloading, and installing anything on your precious PC.

I happen to be a big proponent of Cloud Computing and see it as the future of the computer experience. Those who are squeamish about keeping their data online on someone else’s server, can keep their data on their own hard drives, or a USB key or whatever.

Keeping applications away from computers should reduce the possibility of virus infections. A PC that cannot have applications has fewer opportunities to host a virus. We can stop relying on a user to keep their PC up to date moving virus protection schemes to the server rooms of the service provider.

Keeping an application up to date also should become easier since the update does not have to be distributed to millions of users. Instead, the server is updated allowing the user to experience the benefits without the hassles.  The user may not like the update, but this is no different from a user not liking the latest version of a particular piece of software. True, you are not forced to upgrade right now specially if you do not like the interface, but sooner or later, an upgrade has to take place.

I read a report a while ago that said few upgrade to a new version of a software application. The article referred specifically to Microsoft mentioning that users typically are reticent to upgrade to the latest version. I wonder how much of that reticence has to do with the amount charged for the new application. What if the upgrade was built into the cost of your purchase, would a user then upgrade? I would venture to say that there would be a lot less resistance.

So, virus checking is moved to the server; upgrades are automatic and part of the service; tech support is provided by eMail or through communities much as it is right now; data is kept on the web, or in an attached storage device that is hopefully password protected and encrypted. What’s not to like?

Well for starters, the bandwidth requirements may be onerous. We tend to talk of these technologies as if the whole world is on a high speed Internet connection. But there are large parts of the world where dial up access is as good as it gets, and slow dial up at that. And then, there are varying degrees of high speed. Countries like South Korea are running at 20mbps, while Canada lags behind barely etching out 5mbps. Our country is then saddled with providers who are throttling bandwidth. This all makes Cloud Computing a hard sell.

We are now seeing variations on the pure Cloud Computing initiative. Microsoft, for instance, offers Office Live as its Cloud platform. But the service uses a copy of the application that is loaded on your PC. This makes the online service, effectively, more of a storage space, with some added frills, such as meeting rooms for collaboration. This defeats the very idea of Cloud Computing.

Other companies have started offering desktop applications to make sure you can work when not connected. Thinkfree is one of these. They have a beautiful suite of online applications that are compatible with Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, but are now offering a desktop version as well. There are rumours that even Google will be offering offline access to the files on Google Docs.

The trend we observed at the beginning of personal computers is repeating itself. First came the server applications, then the client side applications, and finally the client-server application. The latter was a balance between parts of the application running on the server, while other segments ran on the client.

We are now moving in a similar direction with Cloud Computing. Some applications run on the Web, while others run on the PC.  Finally also, we are seeing the data emerging as all important with the application becoming a conduit.

Infrastructure Upgrades January 21, 2009

There is a lot of talk on spending money to upgrade the infrastructure as a means of boosting the economy. I do believe that money should be spent on upgrading the infrastructure of our great nation, but this has to be done in spite of the economy.  We surely do not need an excuse to fix things. The physical structures are deteriorating and have to be fixed. Long overdue.

The government does not need to spend money to improve the Canadian economy. We are in trouble because of our very close relationship with the U.S.. No amount of infrstructure spending will resolve that. But the government can use this opportunity to spend money restructuring our economy.

The manufacturing sector is in trouble. The sector that appears to be in trouble, is the one that competes directly with China, India, Mexico and other parts of the world where costs are a lot lower than ours can ever be. Every article I read points out that we are a service economy. Some also mention our activities in the Research & Development area with projetcs such as MarRS in Toronto.

So why don’t we spend money improving this sector of the economy? Improve the high speed networks to catch up to some contries that are boasting 20MB and higher speeds, improve electronic access, and security. Make sure some budget is left over to maintain and regularly update these systems. Change our taxation system to encourage these sectors. 

This will ensure that we are less dependant on a single major customer. It will provide jobs for the many immigrants who come to this country PhD’s in hand. We have everything in place to make this a success, except govenrment participation.

Google Chrome November 18, 2008

I just read an interesting article in CPU Magazine. (http://snipurl.com/5u0un  [www_computerpoweruser_com] ). No, really, CPU Mag has had a few interesting articles over time.

This one deals with a previous version of Chrome, this one by Microsoft. It was developed in 1998 but never released as Microsoft appeared concerned about litigation over anti-competitive actions.

I was training at Bell Canada one day, so many years ago. During a conversation with a bunch of people, they mentioned that Bell had become timid. They were afraid to take decisions because of possible repercussions from the CRTC. More anti-competitive litigation threats.

There was once a company called Ashton-Tate. Developers of dBase IV. Windows 3.0 had just launched, and like so many developers, Ashton-Tate missed the trend and failed to develop a Windows database. The started losing money. I was working for Ingram Micro at the time and was invited to a meeting called by Ashton-Tate to discuss their state. They told us about some applications they were working on. More specifically, they were working on a system where they developed a kernel for an integrated Office application. Except, they would also allow others to create plugins to perform tasks to add features. Way ahead of the times. Ashton-Tate was purchased by Borland (developers of Paradox) and the project disappeared.

Microsoft did not release Chrome. Worse, it is buried somewhere in the Microsoft Archives, all but forgotten.

All of this makes me wonder how many great ideas bite the dust because of market conditions?

How many of these ideas disappear?

Customer Experience September 10, 2008

We are told to always set customer expectations, then beat them. That will keep a customer happy.

But that proves to be far more difficult to do in practice.

I have a long standing client who wanted a printer for his new office. Costs had to kept in check since budgets are constrained. (Aren’t they always?) A printer was purchased and installed. Had to be a Multi Function Printer, one of those that has a scanner, copier, and printer in one unit. Had to be networked. Got a refurbished unit in great shape for $450.

Then the troubles began. Printer is not fast enough. It scans too slowly. Jams once in a while, specially on big jobs. Finally keeps losing its network connection.

The last one was easy to solve. Changed the IP address on the printer, matched the computers to it, problem solved. Done this a million times without any issues. This printer obviously did not appreciate my methods. Whatever. Problem is solved.

The other issues are trickier. The obvious comment is that I should have asked more questions of the client. Lesson to be learned for next time. As in “How many pages do you think you will print in a day?”. Or “How big are the print jobs you send to the printer?”. Just ask more questions.

The client commented that the need for speed outweighs the need for a lower price. The efficient running of an office with few frustrations is more important than saving a few dollars. So we have ordered a better printer, what we call a business class machine that should handle the workload a lot better.

The client is very frustrated and looking for solutions. The newspapers have an ad for a laser MFP from a manufacturer that I consider to be consumer class. The duty cycle of their printer is 25000 pages. He is seriously considering making the purchase.

A couple of questions come to mind.

Would the client have considered a more expensive purchase from the beginning without the negative experiences? If the client is considering a consumer class printer to replace the consumer class printer he already has, does he appreciate the nature of the problem he has run into? Would any amount of research and questions have convinced him to spend more money? Ok, so more than a couple of questions.

Links for July 11, 2008 July 11, 2008

Below are some of the more interesting articles that captured my attention this week. They are displayed in no particular order.

Can the channel respond to mid-market buyers’ unhappiness with vendors?

iPhone wannabes or smart alternatives? You decide

Office romance more European style

price of gasoline is now impacting enterprise software sales

World’s most efficient solar dish

Gnip Launch To Ease The Strain On Web Services

Finally, in the world of I am in the wrong job:

Software failure #1 cause of business downtime

To Throttle or not to Throttle? June 19, 2008

Canadian Telco’s have decided that a small number of users (10% according to some figures) are abusing the Bell Acceptable Use Policy and using too much bandwidth. These users are spoiling the Internet experience for the others who are dutifully abiding by the spirit of the policy. Technologies allowing Deep Packet Inspection are being used to throttle – or shape, which is such a better word – Internet traffic.

All the discussions on the topic that I have seen have revolved around the ethical merits of throttling, or the violation of contractual agreements, or privacy rights infringed. But how do the Telco’s go about deciding what constitutes abuse?

No one appears to know exactly how much internet traffic is too much. The type of traffic being throttled is typically that created by peer to peer networks such as those taking advantage of BitTorrent downloads. This assumes that all such downloads are for illicit purposes, and therefore should be discouraged. Bell Canada is very careful to not make that assertion.  All they say is that they want to maximise the experience for all users.

Bell Canada offers the “Total Internet Max” browsing experience for CDN$89.95 a month. This includes 100GB of usage per month. They also provide usage insurance of CDN$10.00 a month for an additional 30GB of activity.

How does the user know how much bandwidth has been consumed? The information is located online, of course, the irony of which should be obvious. The user is using up their bandwidth to find out how much bandwidth they are using. Technically, surcharges could be incurred during this investigation.

How do you know if are incurring the wrath of the Deep Packet Inspectors? Well you don’t. Unless you are downloading something huge using a BitTorrent service, in which case, you will be throttled. Sorry, your traffic will be throttled.

The information made available online when you sign up for a Sympatico Internet account makes no mention of the shaping or throttling of Internet traffic. Speak to a representative and they make no mention of it either.  In fact, the representative I spoke with, charming as she was, knew nothing about this and had to speak to her supervisor. The latter said Bell does not throttle traffic. I was finally transferred to Customer Service who said the only people able to answer my question were in Tech Support, but I need an account to talk with them.

It was finally agreed that my telephone account was sufficient to let me through. The Tech Support rep, again a charming individual, informed me that the shaping takes place in peak hours defined as being between 6 and 10PM.

I also took a look at the Bell Acceptable Use Policy, which is far ranging. I encourage everyone to read it. Transmitting chain letters is not allowed, for instance. Paragraph two is the one used to justify the shaping of traffic:

Restricting or inhibiting any other user from using or enjoying the Internet, impairing the operations or efficiency of the Service or creating an unusually large burden on our networks, or otherwise generating levels of Internet traffic sufficient to impede other users’ ability to transmit or receive information.
In summary, my major objections to Bell (and Rogers) shaping of Internet traffic are:

1. Numbers are not made available defining what constitutes the shaping of traffic
2. No one is informed about the rules governing shaping
3. No information is made available defining the load and traffic we are being saved from.

Do the owners of the road have the right to determine how much traffic flows through their property? The answer is probably yes.

What rights do users have? Or what rights should the user expect to have?

Links:

Bell Acceptable Use Policy

The different types of traffic being generated on the Web are described in this very interesting (though a bit geeky) article. Note the article dates from 1998!

Fiber to the door June 18, 2008

According to a story in Wired News, Verizon is expanding its investment in Fiber Optic lines to the door. They are bringing 50mbps to the consumer and are already experimenting with 100mbps. Prices range from US$89.95 in New York, to US$139.95 a month in California.

Meanwhile, the powers that be in Canada are throttling our service. Wait, a correction is in order, they are throttling the service of the 10% of the users who are abusing their agreements, so the rest of us can continue taking advantage of the 5 to 16mbps they are providing. Bell Canada is promoting their new fiber optic service with speeds “up to 16mbps” at a price of CDN$84.95.

Which makes more business sense? Throttling back your clients? Or increasing the bandwidth?

I suppose from a strictly dollars and cents issue, throttling may be less expensive. The work is done at the server level with new technologies purchased for this purpose. ComCast in the U.S. has set the precedent.

Installing Fiber, on the other hand, requires planning and foresight.  The logistics for the installation are daunting.  Verizon has set that standard. While the rest of the Telco’s sit and watch, Verizon is providing its customers an incredible experience, and is setting the stage for new and enhanced features.

The future, if one is to believe the pundits, is that the Internet will become the be-all and end-all of everything. Our TV will come from there, our files, pictures, music, will all be stored online, available from anywhere, anytime. The Cloud, as it is referred to, will conquer all. In which case, we will need much faster access and more bandwidth.

The choice is to follow the lead set by ComCast or that of Verizon.