The tech industry in slow period…

I’m on an Xubuntu kick. I have my old old laptop next to me with it; needs a battery, some more memory and some sort of wireless card/USB — my file server, which was on my little send up video – new monitor (free!), and a new HD.

Both running Linux, both just sitting there for me to tinker on when I get time.

Rex

Amen! No hits no runs and no men left on base. Where is the long ball hitter when you need em?

I’m with Chris on the Folding@Home, though I don’t have a PS3. Dual core processors are certainly tearing things up as well. I’ve converted three of my folding boxes to dual core, very nice. Most of my home boxes run Ubuntu for folding, with Macs doing my day-to-day stuff.

The rest of my tech world is regular world since I’m not a techie, with basic powerpoint presentations for first time homebuyers and housing counselors, basic web maintenance stuff, yada yada yada. Barely have time to blog, as is obvious if you visit it!

This is the coolest thing I’ve seen this week. If you already blogged about it, forgive me, but the video got me really, really interested.

Microsoft’s Hallucinations

Slow? Wotchatalkingaboutwillis? Maybe in the Web 2.0 widgets world…

Wii’s still tons o’ fun, Xbox Elite yo (new dashboard yay), and every update of XBMC continues to amaze, newfound love for Tablet in Vista era, Zune is actually halfway decent (well as cool as it can be), Final Cut 6 is shaping up to take on Avid wholesale, can’t wait, but Vegas still my first love. And NewTek’s innovative SPEEDEdit is awweeesomeeee. Mobile 6 finally making Pocket PC worth something. Adobe never ever stops, CS3 proving that. WD Passport’s are just too darned cool. Archos, Archos, oh how I love ye, 704. Panasonic’s godsend AJ-HPX2000 P2 HD gets 24P, DV might finally overtake film, well sorta. And particleIllusion and the new wondertouch emitters, heaven alive. Tired of my Palm tho, it lost the Zen.

And then factor in all the developments in Gesture and Touch-Sensitive tech, Micro Fuel Cells, NAND-Flash drives, Perpendicular Storage Devices, Nanoparticle Batteries, Body Area Networks…and that’s just what I can think of offa toppa my head.

Business Software, ERP/CRM solutions especially, gets me excited. Traditionally viewed as “boring”, but this kind of software has actually dealt with the most interesting software development issues all the time – database issues ranging from performance/scalability, database techniques such as relational or object techniques, user interface issues for massive data entry and statistics/report presentation and so on. Moreover, the industry have typically been early adoptors of the very latest techniques – albeit within the development/research departments. It’s a long road producing an upgrade of an ERP system – it’s not exactly the customer’s favourite pasttime to upgrade the software that runs their businesses. “To deliver is a feature” is a statement that goes double for business software (or “BS” as some call it…), and it’s more challenging than in other industries. Right now I’m especially excited about telephony and small devices in this context. Tell me, when did you last see a fully fledged ERP system running on a Windows Mobile or Symbian device?

I summed it up in my introduction post on my blog: http://tertiaryopinions.com/2007/03/09/hello-world/

::Ludvig A.

Just got a new Mac, and wow it rocks!
Its goodbye Windows for me

I was looking at some of the Powerpoint 2007 templates online, and found this quote.

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts – Winston Churchill”

Sums up the “Microsoft Spirit” – doesn’t it?

Jay, from Bangalore
http://ideaburger.blogspot.com

If you’ll pardon the self-promo, Gormaticon’s next-generation operating system (code-named Sephirot) is quite interesting.

We’re currently accepting sign-ups for Private Beta. Would be great to get you on board, Robert.

There’s lots going on if you look around. Despite the hype, virtual worlds have interesting implications. User interfaces are changing. The iPhone promises to bring multi-touch to the mainstream, while we all wait on Perceptive Pixel to become affordable. Communications is becoming more and more pervasive and immersive simultaneously – from telepresence type technologies to spatial audio in online worlds such as Second Life. Technology change is on the horizon, its just not coming from the IT department this time around.

I’m doing a startup (animoto.com) with friends from around the country and we’re using smartsheet.com to manage our individual to-do lists and group task lists so we’re always on the same page. It’s become an invaluable communication tool, just like google for domains for free corporate email, skype for free ip calling and freeconference.com for free group conference calls.

@4: HAHAHA !!! How true.

What excites me is exactly that it is a low period. I hope we have another goldarn tech recession before it’s all over.

There need to be times of consolidation, retrenchment, what-have-you in technology. the job loss is not desirable, but you can make the case that hiring people without a clear idea of what they are supposed to be doing is the real cause of the problem.

I want a cheap, almost disposable computing device that has its own storage, but really serves more as a dumb terminal than as a personal computer. I want my files online, backed up, available wherever I go, and all for as close to free as can be made possible by unobtrusive advertising click monitoring and so on.

Very few of these new gadgets play well with that scenario though. Everyone wants their own format, their own drivers, their own brand new type of plug between the device and your computer. You can almost hear the vendors in their design meeting saying “those dumb-sh*t users will never figure out that we are locking them into our money-making machine for the next ten years or so. Yeehaa weren’t we smart to get an MBA instead of going into engineering!”.

I like innovation that plays within existing standards and frameworks as much as possible. Impress me with what is REALLY unique about your product: more pixels, better sound, lower cost, and sure, if you want to target fashiionistas, go right ahead. But don’t ask me to sign up to fund your retirement program, I have my own to worry about.

I know people in their mid 40s who have retirement accounts with the same $500 they opened them with, but they have every new gadget that comes out and lust after 75 inch TV screens that they can place a mere 4 feet from their couch. Where would I be today if my parents had been like that?

Technology for its own sake will not only be the downfall of the technologies themselves but much more than that. We should be thankful that it comes up for air from time to time, and hopeful that we don’t all get the bend in the process.

@37,

Too true about gadget lust. I suffer from it as well, but I almost never buy.

I’m really hoping to get a new Mac this year since I’m tired of playing around with Linux so much. I just want my computers to work out of the box. The only thing I want to worry about is the desktop background and what browser I choose to install.

I recently recorded Niroshan (Niro) Ramachandran as part of a corporate a podcast series for Lumera based in Seattle (www.lumera.com). Niro is smart as hell and was perhaps the most articulate scientist I’ve ever listened to. He’s researching how individual proteins interact with each other on the nano level. Proteomics. Today’s technology tools are just barely starting to make a difference to compute outcome. Bioscience research is going to be a huge contributor to quality of life in the next century. This is today’s sputnik. Except this time we’re not racing against the another country, but instead working and exchanging ideas as a world community of technologists, researchers and practitioners to beat the clock against cancer, aids and other diseases. Makes me want to start my entire tech career all over again. Not a Twitter post…but damn cool stuff if you ask me.

http://www.hip.harvard.edu/research/protein_microarray/index.htm

Funny how the A list always ask for the out of the ordinary. Yet never seems to hype the out of the ordinary or support it. Someone tries to think out the box and many of you look down upon us. Yea I’ve tried something fun a time or two recently. This week as a matter of fact. Yet not one of you found it interesting or geeky enough I guess. And you wonder why we get stuck with the same old boring BS day in and day out. Rolls eyes and goes to crawl back in a hole.

Iggy: what was it that you did?

Even worse. I just tried to get to your blog and couldn’t — it times out.

So, don’t complain to me about doing something cool and not having anyone talk about it.

The reason that everyone are talking about this code (including me, I have to admit, at http://pravdam.wordpress.com/2007/04/11/tim-oreillys-code-of-conduct-nice-try-wrong-direction/) is because we are self feeders – bloggers write about it, and then the whole thing is going out of proportion with tech.meme.

@Gormaticon — April 10, 2007 @ 6:17 am

Stop trying to scam anymore people from their money, Marc Fiszman, you have duped a lot of people with their rubbish so called’ Teleport’ Cards 3 years ago and now trying to come up with this? You told me it is basically Linux but you have to pay a lot of money for it! So please stop spamming every forums with your garbage.