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Kumquat's Musings Technology and collaboration Mobile Madness A little bird told me that wireless is the Next Big Thing (TM). As a good little bandwagon jumper, I had no choice but to jump. Hippity, hop I went to the mobile phone store, where I retired my clunky old phone for a swanky new Nokia 6200. Among other things, the phone supports J2ME, which means it can run Java applications developed for mobile devices. Intrigued, I coded a little app that is going to revolutionize how mobile technology is used. In fact, I predict that entire cities will be re-built to support this new way of living. I present to you, the Tip Calculator! If you have a J2ME enabled phone, you can give it a try. Here are the files: TipCalc.jad TipCalc.jar Swarm Theory Wired news is running an article about the electronic collaboration aspects of the war on Iraq: Swarm theory holds that you move fast and don't worry about securing the rear. The benefits to this are many. First, you need fewer troops and less equipment. War becomes cheaper. Second, it's harder for the enemy to attack a widely dispersed formation. Third, units can cover much more ground - they aren't forced to maintain the wedge by slowing down to accommodate lagging vehicles. Fourth, swarming allows you to go straight for the heart of the enemy's command structure, undermining its support from the inside out rather than battling on the periphery. Here's google's take on swarm theory. Equally intriguing is the military's reliance on civilian technologies: "If a general has a problem with his Web browser, then I fix it," Cluff says. "How do you fix it?" I ask. "I consult Microsoft online help," he replies. Somewhere in paradise If you could live anywhere an the world, where would it be? Most people don't seem to be satisfied with my answer of, "I like where I live now! (Indianapolis, IN)" If there was someplace else that I'd rather live, then what am I doing staying here? I've recently had cause to rethink my answer. Kauai, Hawaii is simply one of the most incredibly beautiful places on earth. The scenery offers canyons, cliffs, mountains, lush valleys, numerous waterfalls and beaches. There are no highways and the pace of life is slow and easy going. Sigh. I'm not ready to move, but the thought is tempting. - Taro fields in Hanalei Valley, Kauai, Hawaii By the way, if you're considering a trip to Kaui, I highly recommend The Ultimate Kauai Guidebook - Kauai Revealed Interrupt as necessary Is the widespread adoption of instant messaging another step down the spiraling path of miniscule attention spans? We're already conditioned to accept interruptions. How many times today have you stopped a conversation to answer the phone? Ole Eichhorn muses on The Tyranny of Email: Unlike face-to-face conversation and 'phone calls, people can communicate via email without both paying attention at the same time. You pick the moments at which you pay attention to email. But many people leave their email client running continuously. This is the biggest baddest reason why email hurts your productivity. If you leave your email client running, it means anyone anytime can interrupt what you're doing. Essentially they pick the moments at which you pay attention. (Even some random spammer who is sending you a crappy ad for a get-rich scheme.) This is bad. Instant messaging is even worse! Oohh, look at the cute smiley face that proclaims to the world, "I'M AVAILABLE! Please interrupt me!" Of course, we don't mind - we're used to being interrupted. We're all multitasking fiends! Just don't cry when you realize that our conversations are getting more and more shallow, and each segment of time is only valued until the next distraction comes along. Now, excuse me as I answer the phone.... Corporate IM Jim Hu's article, Message in a Bottleneck takes a look at the adoption of instant messaging within corporations: Employees at all levels cite many reasons that the software is well-suited for the workplace. For example, one always knows if a contact is online, at lunch or reachable on a different phone number listed on his or her status message. And IM has the immediacy of a phone call without any obligation to make small talk, saving time and therefore money. Of course, as with anything new, not everyone is completely comfortable with the technology. Many companies, especially in regulated industries such as finance and health care, continue to restrict IM usage, fearing security gaps, compliance breaches and loss of productivity from nonbusiness communication. Still others are simply trying to figure out what to do with the technology. </em> Lament Segway A recent Gary Rivlin article goes to some length to describe the hardships of trying to sell the Segway. How could a 77,000-square-foot factory designed to produce 10,000 Segways a week by the end of 2002 result in the current production rate of about 10 a week? The article contains several examples that apply well to anyone introducing new technologies to society: Paul Saffo, a director at the Institute for the Future in Menlo Park, California, describes a ride on a Segway as a "gas" but adds that the machine "costs three times what a consumer device should cost, and it's about 40 pounds too heavy." .... Even Kamen confidantes questioned his decision to get into the manufacturing business, but as the inventor saw it, he had no choice....Maybe so, but Kamen also acknowledges that an emotional attachment to his invention played a major role in his decision: "If I had partnered up with somebody, we wouldn't have the thrill, frankly, of helping to add this new dimension of transportation to the world." He admits he never even tested the waters among potential partners. .... The postal workers genuinely seemed to appreciate the transporter, and no wonder. Carrying a satchel that weighs roughly 35 pounds leaves them bushed by day's end,if not suffering back or leg pain. Yet the trial was hardly an unqualified success. Consider the experience of Chris Pesa, who has been immortalized inside Segway headquarters as the first carrier to deliver a piece of mail via Segway. Pesa enjoyed trying out the device, but it didn't save him any time: He couldn't sort the mail between homes as he could when walking his route. And if it rained, it was impossible to carry an umbrella, because you needed both hands to steer. .... Segway's hometown force tried out four. The Manchester officers found the machines useful for downtown parking control, says department spokesperson Shawn Fournier, but that was about it. He adds that the mountain bikes his department employs to patrol certain beats "are cheaper, and they don't have batteries that run out of juice." .... [Gary Smith] describes the Segway as an "innovative device" but vehemently opposes its use on sidewalks. He does not buy claims that the scooter - which travels up to 12 miles per hour and weighs (with rider) hundreds of pounds - can stop on a dime. IM a business enabler, baby! In late 2001, John Udell asked, "Can IM Graduate to Business?". A year later instant messaging vendors are certainly hoping so. Microsoft, AOL and Yahoo are now offering business versions of instant messaging software. These packages offer features like identity control and the ability to log and audit IM usage. David Coursey argues that formal corporate adoption of IM will only ruin the party for current users: MY CONCERN is that, if IM goes corporate, people will be judged not so much by what they accomplish, but by whether their smiling iconic personae on the IM contact list shows they're "available." .... With the corporate security and political correctness police looking at every word you type, can the end of meaningful communication be far behind? Sure, people will still gather at the water cooler (or local equivalent) to share ideas. But we'll lose our ability to do so in postcard-sized bursts via IM. We may be wary, but the change will come and the users will embrace it. Just wait until the current college kids that are now growing up with IM hit the business world. You and I may be enthusiastic users, but that's nothing like growing up in an online social network that defines your very being. To get a taste of what this is like, follow the buzz around one of Microsoft's latest beta product, Threedegrees. Driving bad, scenery good The wet, blustery snowstorm provided yet another weekend of driveway shoveling and slow driving. However, for those who stopped to notice, the frosted world was well worth slowing down for. I grabbed my camera and headed toward an as of yet unexplored park near my new home. Duct tape turtle Last week, I mentioned the 1950s educational film, Duck and Cover. Turns out that there's an updated version for all of today's boys and girls: Duct Tape and Cover. The places thoughts go The weblogging world is buzzing about Google's recent acquisition of Blogger. The story was first reported on Dan Gillmore's weblog. From there, the news spread to several weblogs, then to online news sites, and then back to mainstream media. Business reasons of the purchase are mere speculation. In the meantime, Google's link analysis technology and the blogging world's individualized pockets of personal commentary are creating a shift in how public opinion is expressed. What does this shift look like? Pre-shift: Public response to news is submitted to central locations (mainstream media). The submissions are filtered and distributed to the public. Letters to the editor and online discussion areas are examples of this system. The reader can follow the trail of a conversation, but has limited ability to dig deeper into each contributor's mind. Post-shift: Individuals respond in their weblog, or in some other personal space. Knowledge of this content spreads by word of mouth or by link tracking technology. If I want to dig deeper into someone's opinion, I now have access to archives of their postings. Opinions no longer come from segmented expressions, but from defined voices that have a history. Dan Gillmore's weblog posting on the Blogger story shows how the shift is occurring. At the bottom of the posting, he lists about twenty weblogs that are commenting on the story. Additional resources NYTimes:Deal May Freshen Up Google's Links Wired:Why Did Google Want Blogger? Weblog link tracking: Blogdex, Daypop, Trackback Newsfeed display by CaRP