Let’s Focus, People
There was a story in the Toronto Star earlier this week about how 100 drivers a day fail to stop behind the open doors of a streetcar, putting them at risk of hitting a disembarking passenger.
So what’s one the big reasons for the failure to stop?
Cell phones. Yup, drivers are so busy yacking away that they often fail to see a large, red public transportation vehicle come to a stop ahead of them.
Why people in many places are still allowed to drive and talk is a mystery. There’s no way you can truly focus on driving if part of your brain is paying attention somewhere else. People who check their Blackberrys are even worse.
The lack of focus is becoming a pandemic. Rather than paying attention to the task at hand, we’re distracting ourselves on purpose.
Along with cell phones, Blackberrys, iPhones et al, one of the biggest distraction culprits is the iPod. People plug in and tune out as they walk, bike and take the bus, subway and streetcar - oblivious to their surroundings.
As I ride back and forth to work on my bike, I’m shocked that so many people ride while listening to their iPods. They can’t even hear me coming alongside them, let along a car. Given how little respect Toronto drivers give bicyclists, the last thing I’d do as a bicyclists is not be completely focused on the task at hand.
Perhaps multi-tasking is to blame. We live in a world where doing more than one thing at a time is totally acceptable. How can anyone be super productive if they’re only doing one thing at a time?
Truth be told, we all need to focus on being focused - be it driving, biking or working.
Technorati Tags: bicycling, ipod touch, wireless
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Tags: bicycling, blackberry, ipodThe Death of Free Wi-Fi
It used to be that jumping on a free Wi-Fi network to check e-mail or do some casual Web browsing was easy. Most people didn’t lock down their networks because they were happy to share and/or they didn’t know how to do lock down their networks. Few people abused the privilege, and it was a win-win all around.
Today, it’s a different world. It’s increasingly diificult to find a free and open Wi-Fi connection. Most networks have the evil “lock” icon. This is all the fault of Linksys, Cisco and D-Link, which have made security on new routers far too simple to set up. What ever happened to the complex process of configuring a WEP password!?
Meanwhile, the media has done a great job convincing everyone that open Wi-Fi networks are just an invitation for strangers to download gigabytes of music, movies and porn.Unlike the credit card business that forgives its customers if someone else uses their cards without authorization, the ISPs - and, for that matter, the music industry - put the onus on the subscriber for whatever happens on their -Internet connection.
Then, you’ve got the bandwidth caps being quietly applied by the ISPs to “manage” their networks. Of course, it’s also a way to monetize their networks given the emergence of bandwidth-sucking video services such as Hulu and YouTube. When you have a bandwidth cap, there’s far less incentive to share.
What it means is the free ride is over. It was fun while it lasted but the party is being shut down. In it’s place, you have hot-spots run by the ISPs; services such as Boingo, (which offers access to more than 13K hotspots in Canada but, sadly, none in Bayfield, Ont.); the occaisonal independent cafe that offers customers quasi-free Wi-Fi to lure people away from Starbucks; and altruistic, but under-funded community groups that try to offer free Wi-Fi.
RIP, free and open Wi-Fi; it was nice knowing you.
Technorati Tags: wi-fi
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New Facebook: Does it Matter?
Hey look, Facebook has a new look - sort of like adding a new coat of paint after seeing what the neighbours (aka Friendster) are doing.
There’s nothing wrong with spiffing up the place but is it going to make much of a difference? I mean, Facebook is now what it is - an interesting service but no longer the compelling entity it was a year ago. This is due to a combination of strategic mistakes, new players and the novelty factor wearing off.
Then again, I tried to leave Facebook recently only to realize it’s still a relevant tool if you’re a digital creature of habit. Like many people, Facebook has its uses but it’s not something I need or use every day.
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Fox Creating Social Media Empire
Within Toronto’s tech community, Maggie Fox is widely recognized for being one of the social media gurus. Her company, Social Media Group, has established itself as one of the leading consulting firms, highlighted by its relationship with Ford Motor Co.
With so much happening on the social media front, it is not surprising to see Maggie and SMG make a bold move by signing a letter of intent to purchase Washington-based Livingstone Communications. This will expand SMG to 20 people, and make it the “world’s largest independent social media marketing and communications firm”.
Geoff Livingston, CEO of Livingston Communications and author of Now Is Gone: Primer on New Media for Executives and Entrepreneurs, will become executive VP, Americas for SMG, and continue to head the Washington office. Social Media Group will also acquire the Buzz Bin blog (www.livingstonbuzz.com/blog) and the BlogPotomac conference.
Congrats, Maggie!
Technorati Tags: maggie fox, social media group
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The Week That Was (aka The Josh Hamilton Story)
If there was a dominant theme on MET this past week it was Josh Hamilton.
Hamilton is a baseball player with the Texas Rangers whose comeback from drug and alcohol addiction was capped in fairy tale style when he hit a staggering 28 home runs during the All-Star home run derby. Inspired by his comeback and performance, I wrote a quick post.
In no time at all, the traffic started to soar on MET - strange given this is a tech blog. I discovered that doing a Google search for “Josh Hamilton” would also highlight blog posts at the top or bottom of the page. Ah, the power of Google!
There was also a lot of interest in a post about how the buzz about the iPhone has overshadowed the reality 3G networks are going to be a golden goose for wireless carriers as consumer demand access to the mobile Web.
And my continued obsession with the iPod Touch also got some traction with posts on whether the Touch is the new XP, and how the Apple App Store makes the Touch even sexier.
Interesting Web Sites
I’m not sure whether there’s a business to be had but Bitstrips is definitely cool. It’s a Canadian start-up that lets you create comic strips. It’s also received some impressive media coverage. You can see Bitstrips in action on StartupNorth.
For Canadians looking to save a few bucks (Note: This is a Canadian obsessions that ranks alongside hockey.), check out Smart Canucks, which bills itself as the “First Canadian Deals Blog”.
Twitter for Travel?
As you can imagine, I spend a lot of time scouring the online travel landscape for new, different and interesting start-ups. When you work for a start-up, it just seems to be part of the gig to see what others for inspiration, ideas and insight into what and what not to do.
It’s not often that I write about competitors but Trazzler caught my attention, mostly because it involves Twitter founders Evan Williams and Biz Stone, who are listed as Trazzler’s founding advisors.
Trazzler is service offering travel inspiration. Clearly work-in-progress, it features articles on things to do and places to go. If you see something you like (e.g. Buying Heavenly Breads at Alain Decasse’s Boulangepicier in Paris), you can add it to a wish list. Perhaps the most intriguing part of Trazzler is a yet-to-be-released feature called the Travel Personality that using algorithms to figure out your interests.
Weekly Poll
Technorati Tags: ipod touch, josh hamilton, trazzler, Twitter
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Came This Close to Buying a Touch!
Given my obsession with an iPod Touch is well-known, a colleague dropped off a copy of a Wal-Mart flyer showing an 8GB model on sale for $179.83, or a $100 discount.
At $179.83, buying a Touch went from a nice-to-have to a must-have-right-now. So as much as it would mean driving to a mall, it was a sacrifice I was prepared to make.
Sadly, it turns out the flyer had a typo - the “1″ in $179.83 should be a “2″, which puts the Touch back into nice-to-have territory. Apparently, a few lucky people were able to take advantage of the typo by taking the flyer into a Future Shop, and getting Future Shop to match the price and get an additional $10 off - letting them buy a Touch for $169.
I’m envious!
Update: In a lame attempt to see I can sneak in a deal, I biked to the local Wal-Mart this morning. Sadly, there were signs stating there was a mistake in the flyer. I got no love from the salesclerk either.
Technorati Tags: Apple, ipod touch
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iPhone Touch Even Sexier Now
(Note: Headline should read “iPod Touch….”)
Amid all the excitement about the 3G iPhone, there’s an interesting story that is getting little attention: the iPod Touch has become even sexier and more attractive.
For anyone looking to buy a cheap iPod Touch from people who snapped up a new iPhone, forget about it. Rather than dumping them on the market, Touch owners are not only keeping them but falling in love with them all over again.
Why?
I think it mostly has to with Apple’s App Store, which is virtual buffet for anyone look to customize and expand the functionality of a Touch or iPhone.
If you’re into music, you can turbo-charge things by downloading the Pandora or Last.fm applications; mobile auctions are a snap using eBay’s application, while the Twitterati can snap off 140-characters on the run by using Twitterific.
For Touch users, this has made it even easier to live without a built-in phone. With Wi-Fi access, they can use and enjoy all the applications they want that require a connection to the Web - and they don’t have to pay a monthly fee to a wireless carrier for a voice or data package.
It’s been my contention that the Touch is the new XP, and I’m not backing away. In fact, I would argue the Apple App Store strengthens this thesis.
More: iPhone Alley is reporting that AT&T is offering iPhone users free access to its Wi-Fi hotspots.
Technorati Tags: Apple, iPhone, iPod Touch
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The Resurrection of Henry Blodget
The rehabilitation of Henry Blodget has officially been completed with the news Silicon Valley Insider has raised some seed capital.
From a high-flying Internet analyst on Wall St. to an international disgrace sanctioned by the SEC, Blodget’s resurrection as a respected and insightful technology voice is pretty impressive. You have to give him credit for hunkering down and then building his credibility from scratch. Meanwhile, the another notorious Wall St. Internet analyst, Mary Meeker, continues to talk the same online smack that she was doing during the dot-com boom (e.g. China’s red hot!)
Technorati Tags: henry blodget, mary meeker
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Thinking Digital, Acting Personal
If there’s one thing striking and perhaps puzzling about the Toronto high-tech community - and, for that matter, tech communities around the world - it’s how everyone is so digital/wired but so hungry to be personal.
For all the e-mail, Twitter-ing, Facebook-ing, IM-ing, Blackberry-ing and text-messaging, and all the time spent hunkered over computers, many people have this innate need to be together. It’s not enough to communicate digitally through various mediums; there must be personal contact - and so much the better if it involves beer.
DemoCamp 18 earlier this week is a good example. On a hot summer night, about 200 people crammed themselves into a sauna that’s usually a hip restaurant. The presentations were alright but it was more impressive to see so many people there. It struck me as a club where you get to meet with people who walk your walk and talk your talk.
I asked a recruiter, who was hanging out at the bar, if the size of the crowd had any correlation to activity within Toronto’s tech community. With a beer in hand, he looked around and said there was a “modest” amount happening but the enthusiasm in the room had more to do with networking and socializing.
What I find particularly interesting is how the need to talk stands in contrast with the fact people are loathe to talk on the phone - preferring instead to Twitter, IM, text or e-mail. Michael Arrington, who organizes many social events and conferences, recently wrote a post suggesting people not leave voice-mail messages because it takes longer to listen to a message than read it.
I’m not sure whether “paradox” is the right word but for all the digital chatter happening, people are still people with a desire/need to be analog. This explains the plethora of events, conferences (mesh is as much a social as a conference) and meet-ups, as well as why many people still flying around to meetings despite the time, energy and environmental impact involved.
Technorati Tags: democamp18
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Canadians Are Wired
According to eMarketer, more than 22 million Canadians, or two-thirds of the population, will have regular access to the Internet this year. By 2012, that number will rise to 25 million.
While the number is impressive, it will be far more interesting to see how Canadians use of the Web will be impacted if the proposed - and evil - new copyright legislation is enacted, and how (if?) the federal government does anything to address Net Neutrality.
With enthusiastic adoption of high-speed access, Canadians have been enthusiastic users of the Web but you will excitement and usage decline if there are restrictions on what you can do with it. Another issue is how the copyright bill and Net Neutrality could impact innovation.
Those are much more interesting and bigger issues than the Internet population.
Technorati Tags: canada, eMarketer
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