Digital Living

The Amazing Ugliness -- Yet "Inner Beauty" -- Of Amazon Kindle

At a first glance, Amazon Kindle really looks ugly. In the era of iPhone, iPod and iMac, it is amazing to see such a new product being brought up to the market without any sense or feel of aesthaethics nor sense of beauty passionatedly attached to it.

Yet, once we delve into the concept of Amazon Kindle itself; exploring its key ideas, feature, of what it can do, the device's purpose and function itself start to make sense. It can do useful stuff! It has paper-like screen technology that makes reading easy, it is paperweight (not heavier than a 10 ounce novel that you carry in your hand), it even has wireless connectivity and embedded storage system that makes downloading and reading book and stuff online fast, convenient and easy too.

Best of all, Amazon actively promote this device by offering a very good price for Kindle-ready materials. $30 dollar something book now become $9.99. It's amazing! People might soon respond to this and start to understand the real value of kindle.

Amazon knows its position as the de-facto king of digital reading content provider. It knows that it has the vast and largest collection of book and reading materials that people want. Best of all, it also understand the beautiful economic of "digital paper", "digital reading" and "digital distribution" -- and how better margin can be created through "paperlike" technology and "digital distribution"/"digital subscription" system.

Hence, despite the ugly look that kindle display at the first site, beneath the ugly face seems Amazon Kindle is a device tha pretty make sense. Many key aspect that would make digital-reading experience convenience seems has been considered in detail.

Yet, of all the useful thing that kindle can do, eventually Amazon for sure will need to create a much much polished and beautiful physical form factor of its kindle device. At $399 it could be as polished as that. Unless, somebody else will create that "next" killer product (probably Apple next project?) ... and left Amazon Kindle way back in the dust.

What The Internet (Today) Has Become ...

In the past we used the internet for many serious thing ("I'm doing research on the web", "I discover this product info on the web", etc). But now, increasingly we use the internet as part of our digital connectivity, social activity and daily living.

That's why its wonderful to notice Palm's new advertising that emphasis our new understanding (and discovery) about the internet: NOT as a medium of 'serious thing' only, but as a great medium of social interaction of our daily living activity.

Here's one ad where Palm put this understanding very nicely:

Bringing friends together with phone + text + IM + web.

The phone is so so indeed, but the message is correct. It capture the essence of what internet is probably all about these days: A medium for interactive exchange and active social interaction for all of us. It no longer just act as a static medium of information publishing or static sharing only.

Innovation That Matters

Product must be designed with the right perspectives in mind.

I recently saw Sony design for the new handycamera. It's a sophisticated design in the Sony tradition of perfection and excellence. It got so many whiz and bang of latest statecraft art and technology that sony can produce.

But one thing suddenly strikes me strong. How does these all related with the latest trend of how people would like to record and share their live on the net?

That's where I start believe that "technology has to be developed with the right perspective in mind".

My guess is that people at Sony lab today -- continuing the Sony tradition of excellence -- has been continuously update the Sony handycam to the next level of Sony standard of perfection and excellence.

But the biggest question now is: does such innovation really matter? Does more pixel clarity resonate with the need of people to quickly and post their Sony handycam content to the web, for example? Does it make people could easily crafted up their upload-ready YouTube and online video for example?

This is where probably people, scientist, engineers and everybody will have to remember at all times that innovation and advancement that matters is only innovation and advancement that helps people accomplish and advance their goals. Innovations that just being run along the "traditional path" of excellence .. might not be the excellent innovation that people wants. It is not the kind of innovation that matters.

Sony founders in the past has that strong instinct to know perimeter and areas of "innovation that matters". That's why Sony at that time could invent a the walkman -- which is NOT an advanced version of the audio system that Sony has at that time, but -- in the contrary -- probably a "lower end" version of their latest audio innovation.

Yet, Sony Walkman is historically proven to be one of the most iconic innovation achievement in Sony history.

The same thing happens with PC.

PC -- when it was introduced was  not the "advanced" version of the latest Mainframe. Instead it was the "clunkier" version of the "high-end model".

Innovation that matters bring greater impact than what typical innovation that just take current and existing product to the next level. It takes an insight of a great leader to instinctively feel, capture and understand where the next impactful innovation that matter area really is.

With such leader in hand, Sony could give birth to the Sony Walkman. With such leader in hand, Apple could give birth to the iPod and the iPhone. 

Without such leader, people could be dangerously trapped in a series of continuous "kaizen" of innovation; building product and processes that increasingly leads towards the "next "excellence, yet at the same time becomes -- paradoxically - "less relevance" to the latest needs and latest trend that people really itch with and need solution about.

Innovation that matters is probably the heart of any innovation attempt that every business nor strategist nor technologist shall look at, and take   careful thought about. Without such, people might be "trapped" producing continuous innovations that less matter -- which produces no value to the betterness nor advancement of the world society capability as a whole anyway.

Thought Provoking Book That I Intend To Buy ...

I came across this New York Time excerpt on a book about Picasso when I browse the web a few days ago. As I read through it, I found some quotes that fascinatingly describes how "curiously thought provoking" this book could be. One of them describes Picasso's continuous innovation approach towards style and form that he works on. It goes as something like this:

“Of course if you note all the different shapes, sizes and colors of models he works from, you can understand his confusion. He doesn’t know what he wants. No wonder his style is so ambiguous. It’s like God’s. God is really only another artist. He invented the giraffe, the elephant and the cat. He has no real style. He just keeps on trying other things".

Seems to be a fascinating thought provoking book. I would like to buy one. :-)

Another book that I am "curious" to take a look/read or "study" is this:

I hardly know in detail about the background nor history of Richard Stallman. But Stallman's work indeed have changed the world that we live-in in such a big way.

Without his work, the open source, the internet technology stack that we enjoy today might not have happened at all; the LAMP stack that become the engine of most of the web 2.0 internet might not have happened at all; and the internet phenomena as a whole itself might not happen at all nor as fast, either.

Among many things that I'd like to observer and learn about his thinking, is the fascinating fact that when he speak about "free" in Free Software, he actually always ment it to be:

Free as in Freedom, NOT Free as in Beer!

This could be a big-big thinking thing that web2.0+ modern society need to fully understand.

Gallileo was ahead of his time when he postulates about things that his generation can not see. History will see whether Stallman "eccentric genius" -- across time -- will be considered eventually as "eccentric" or as a "real genius".

Time will tell.

But reading about it (and trying to understand the "core message" and the "core essence" of it) might be important.

When I saw the book around, I would like to buy one.

In Communication: Put The Context First. Then The Request!

Garr Reynold post an inspiring thought about the importance of putting the context of a request first, before asking for the request itself (through a signage). He/Daniel-Pink call it "Emotionally Intelligent" sign.

I listen to their concept, and I feel emotionally moved that someone really think about that out once more in this "modern age era", where seems every single signage being built today was built wihout these excellent, simple, brilliant yet most important emotional concept attached to it. That probably why so many annoying/selfish signs is now spreading (and born) everywhere around us.

Looking at this, my basic believe and my simple take on this great concept is this:

People don't like to be told. They "hate" being forced to. 

Yet people like making their own conclusions and decisions. (And once people conclude and making their own decision, they willingly do action based on that).

Emotionally intelligent sign provides context for that to happen.

Truly brilliant stuff!

 

Comparing Bill Gates' Presentation Style With Steve Jobs' Presentation Style

Picture 1: Bill Gates Presentation Slides

Picture 2: Steve Jobs Presentation Slides

Picture courtesy of Garr Reynold's "Presentation Zen"

Bill Gates and Steve Jobs are probably two of the most remarkable icon of the 21st century. Their work, "friendship" and "rivalry" excite and inspire us across time. Their passion for what they do might influence generations of entrepreneurs, inventors and marketers around the globe.

Watching (and trying to understand him, and "seeing" Bill Gates evolve) since the mid 80s, one of the characteristic of Bill Gates is that he seem to be a person that can "feel" and sense "what's next thing/trend that would rightly apply to the masses"; and he seem to be a person that could be "openly" open to talk about what he saw too, to the masses.

• Bill Gates seem to see thing that is coming. And express it, and share it "openly" to the public.

Steve Jobs is probably a bit different. Being a powerful disciple of "balanced" and "simplicity" -- the "zen"  of things of "Asian value", he seem to be instinctively passionate about "simplicity", "harmonics" and the "balance of things".

• Steve Jobs seem genuinely (and deeply) passionate about his products, its ideals, believes and the whole exciting idealism, ideas and passionate work that is being put behind it. Amazingly, at all time, Steve also seem to be really really great at expressing these expressive believes openly on stage to the public. It's a key part of his charisma. A magical part of his "reality distortion field" persona.
  

• Yet while Steve is truly open about his feels, at the same time he's also truly superbly (and openly) "secretive" about "what's next cool thing" that would/might/could have come next. Beyond his CURRENT passionate cool exciting products that he expressively talk about; everything else about the "future" is "under wrap". We can not see nor hear anything abouut it -- not even have a "peek sneak" about it. It's all "kept guardedly and secretively secret ... in the 'dark' ".

The slides of these two great personality really reflects the truest nature of their personality.

• Bill Gates probably "market" to people through sharing his analytics believe of what he sees surrounds us, and what probably he think is the "surest" thing that's coming (and how Microsoft could make or already make a great impact on that).

• Steve Jobs probably "market" to people by expressing his passion about the "zen" of things, and he openly express these beautiful feeling "outward", casting and sharing his passion of beauty, balance, simplicity and perfection to the highest and deepest emotional degree. Get the entire audience get excited about it too. Yet he kept the "future of what he see" strictly closed and open.

• Through Steve Jobs "slides and presentation" we can see what's today, but we can not fully (nor explicitly) see "what's next"; meanwhile through Bill Gates "slides and presentation" we can see what's today, what's the future ... but probably not exactly see "what's really cool" today. 

• When it comes to Bill Gates' slides, it all come to "logical" senses. Less "emotional" senses apply. When it comes to Steve Jobs' slides, it all come to "emotional senses" -- with adequate does of "logical" sense apply -- yet with the rest of the "future/next" component nor element kept secretly hidden.

Both style has its strength and weaknesses. But in the hand of each maestro both works equally well too. We can learn so much from that.

Key lesson here, perhaps:

Bill Gates Presentation (Picture 1) vs. Steve Jobs Presentation (Picture 2): Both has its own strength (and weakness). To understand its truest power, we have to understand the context of their "personality" and "mindset". In the hand of each maestro, each presentation style works equally well. They change the world. Their presentation fits their outer persona, and truest inner believe. Yet for those who are outside: Never "mix" the two approaches together bluntly -- without deep thoughtful thinking nor careful consideration -- because doing such could produce a "combo" slide that is half-good and half-bad, in other word: a "frankenstein" disaster.

Key action point:

1. At all time, let's build slides that resonates with our heart; slides that speaks the feeling, story, believes and emotion of what we felt and truly care about; slides that resonates what we truly believes in, passionate about and truly want to speak out.
2. Beyond that, adding the powerpoint background color, or keynote picture, bullet points, is just a matter of "powerpoint technicalities".
3. In presentation building, it's whether our heart truthfully speak out through the medium that matters. Everything else is just a secondary addition. Ugly pictures and rambling bullet points that speaks out is much better than neat graphics and fancy color that can't resonate the key substance of our inner feel, story, emotion and message.

Tom Peters once said:

"Remember, in doing presentation, your aim is to communicate, to act, to change things, to tell a great story, to influence, to make people understand (adopt, adapt, and act ) ... and to change the world (for the better)"

He add a beautiful inspiring quote by Adlai Stevenson:

“In classical times when Cicero had finished speaking, the people said, ‘How well he spoke,’ but when Demosthenes had finished speaking, they said, ‘Let us march.’”  —Adlai Stevenson

and a famous immortal words by JFK:

“The only reason to give a speech is to change the world” - JFK

That's probably something worthy to remember.

Garment Glowing In The Dark

It was reported that Knitting specialists at the University of Manchester have developed high-tech battery-powered textile yarns that could be used to make clothing glow in the dark. These yarns could soon be integrated into clothing worn by cyclists, joggers, outdoor workers and pedestrians. These garments would be safer for users than current clothing used by emergency services which need external light sources to make them visible.

Fascinating technology, but what'd be the real potential use of it (for the masses and business)? Would future computer casing and keyboard one day be able to glow in the dark without any light-source required, so it would be easy to find them? Would that be useful?

I wonder what Marie Currie will say if she sees this during her time. :-)

Sneak-Peek-Look Of A Google Phone!

Some people said that below might be the sneak peek look of the google phone!

It looks sleek, simple, beautiful.

Wonderful!

Together with the iPhone, the world of the internet mobile access (and internet mobile browsing) becomes so much better because of that.

Making My Mac COMPATIBLE With Linux/Windows & The "Future"

I recently got my second Mac arrived, and one the key thing that I need to consider an decide quickly is: what software to install in it?

Answering such question is not that "obvious" in my case, because when I am working I tend to use different computers at once or separately. These computers comes with different form-factor, and different OS too (e.g. I use my small-size ultraportable Vaio to go between meetings, my new Mac for everyday work,  my OlderMac for "other heavier stuff", my ThinkPad -- that sits on the desk at my hometown -- when I visit there).

Yet although each computer has a different purposes, as a total they are all also serve ONE common purpose: to produce document, data, design, code and information in one standard that would make it easy for me to work on them from anytime, anywhere, any-computer too.

So, every computer will be unique and different in their own fashion, but each one of them -- at the application and document/data level -- shall be seamlessly integrated too.

QUICK DEFINITION OF "MY NEEDS" (A VERY LOONG LIST)

Come to think about it, my "requirement list" for software and application that I will install in my new computer (and in my other computers as well) goes -- suprisingly -- LENGTHY like this:

1. I need to be able to move data swiftly between at least 3 computers: my old mac, my new mac, my Vaio computer, and probably my older Thinkpad computer too.
2. Depend on where I happen to be, I might use different computer. So I should decide to create a working environment that ensures the process of moving data created in one computer to another computer will always be smooth, painless and easy.
3. I don't want tool differences nor data format incompatibility to bog me down at anytime. Hence:
1. Although I operate different computer which run on different operating systems, I want the basic working tool to work the same (or at least similarly) across platform.
2. I want my working documents and work result that I am doing creating/making to be accessible, readable, and editable through any other computer system that I use in different location today or in the upcoming future.
3. Moving into the future, I don't want my data and documents to be "trapped" inside one computer, and becoming unreadable to the other because the data is stored in "strange/proprietary format" that is unknown to the other computer.
4. Because I work mobile and across anytype of computer that I found, I want everything to be accessible everywhere while I'm mobile.
5. I also -- eventually want to be able to do "remote desking" -- meaning: If I found a computer that is not mine, I can use it and make it "temporarily mine" by booting that computer with my own USB-drive-OS (which has bootable-Linux and all the application program that I need) inside it. With this, basically I can now work anytime, anywhere -- using computer that is mine, or the one that I "borrow" when I don't have my own computer nor laptop with me.
6. Because data is the most important thing, I want everything to be -- as much as possible -- virus-unfriendly.
7. Although I will use alot of computer and will need to install alot of software in each, I want all the software to be legal software, but I don't want to pay inefficiently for that either. Legal software license is a must, but "smart-purchase" has to be put into the equation as well.

What a list!

TRANSLATE IT INTO PLAN ...

Taking those factors into consideration, I found below "approach" fascinatingly might be able to "solve" it "all":

1. I will use "Open Tool" that works similarly across platform (Mac, Linux, Windows). I will use it to do internet stuff and to perform most common activities everyday. By doing so, I could work everywhere at anytime with same application that works seamlessly across computer system that I use.
2. I will use "Open-Standard Format" as my approach to store information and data. That way, I no longer have to worry about "data format incompatibility" between all my machines.
3. I will do very specific thing using "ProprietaryTool & ProprieteryFormat" that is optimized (or available only) on each specific operating system, yet as much as possible, once that "unique work" is done, I will keep the end-result in "Open-Standard Format" once more. For example, I might use Mac iWork/Keynote as my presentation slide format, but I once it's done, I will keep a PDF version of the document, so it can be read easily across any platform in the future too.

WHAT SOFTWARE TO INSTALL?

With all those "crucial" decisions made, here are collective list of software that I finally decided to use and to install on my machines. By design, these softwares are all will work equally well on my Sony VAIO, Windows PC, older Mac, my new Mac (even on "my other machine" [e.g. iMac] in the future -- if I might have one someday):

1. Mozilla Firefox as my standard browser that works across all platform.
   1. Mac, Linux, Windows machine -- no problem.
   2. I will synchronize all my bookmarks (created through individual machines that I am using) through del.icio.us.
2. Thunderbird as my email & RSS reader.
   
   1. Now I can easily move my email box from my older PC to the new Mac.
   2. In the future I can move my email box (from my Mac) to any "future" platform that I choose (which could potentially be another Mac also).
3. Thunderbird as my address book keeper.
   
   1. Now I can easily move all my contact data from my older PC to the new Mac.
   2. In the future I also look forward to be able to synchronize my contact data to the web -- hence all my computer can sync and share their contact data to the web.
4. Pidgin/Adium as my universal chat client.
   1. I will use Pidgin on my Windows and Linux machines.
   2. I will use Adium -- a Mac version of Pidgin -- on my Mac machines.
5. Twitbin as my twitter interface.
   
   1. Although Twitterific is cute and the recent version of AIR twitter is great, Twitbin is the one that works across all my machine greatly, because I can install Twitbin in my Firefox browser (which works in all my machines).
6. OpenOffice/NeoOffice as my universal "Office" front-end.
   1. I will use OpenOffice on Windows and Linux machines.
   2. I will use NeoOffice -- which is a Mac derivative of OpenOffice -- on my Mac machines.
7. Skype as my IP phone standard.
   1. Works and behave the same across all my machine.
8. GIMP as my photoshop editing software.
   1. Works and behave the same across all my machine, enabling me to touch my photo eveywhere.
9. ODF (OpenDocumentFormat) for my data standard.
   1. As much as possible, I save everything in ODF format. That way, my document becomes virus-unfriendly, and ready to be used for processes that I might need to perform in the future.
   2. Each time I need to share my document with the world, I convert the document in MS-Office format, or into PDF format.

HOW THE FINAL "X-STATION" LOOKS LIKE?

With that, now I have common application and data format that works smoothly and similarly across all machine that I am using. Also I got application style and working experience that is consistent and similar across all computer platform and machine that I have.

My browser -- everywhere -- now look seamlessly the same. I can add bookmark from my Vaio, and have it sync to my new Mac. My RSS reader behave the same, everything works similar across many different operating system.

That helps me standardize my skill and tool. It reduces the headache "of getting used" to different applications across different machines as well.

As for specific stuff (such as: creating video, storing photo, video conferencing, creating dazzling presentation [using Keynote], I rely on Mac's specific software and stuff. iLife & iWork still has its place. Also, since OmniGraffle now no longer built-in within the Mac itself, I might consider to have Parallel and Visio for the diagramming work that I need to do.

Fortunately, with the Mac OS X that I had today -- and through parallel software -- I can have all these systems running seamlessly together inside my machine. With this, now I can seamlessly work everywhere on any machine that is most comfortable to fit the occasion. And I got peace in mind as well, because all my data and tool are now open standard. (Which means -- mostlikely 95% accuracy -- I will not have to worry later on because -- for example -- my email data suddenly "trapped" inside one operating environment and can not move "into the future machine" quickly and easily; or my office document data, or my Bookmark, or my address book, suddenly "trapped" inside one proprietary format that makes it very difficult to move it to a new operating environment).

ANTICIPATING TREND THAT MIGHT INCREASINGLY HAPPEN "SOON", OR IN THE NEAR "FUTURE"

Computing in the future might require more and more "open tool" and "open-data-format" to be used. With such we can work anywhere, anytime, from any computer at all time. Application and data format incompatibility -- and the classic "data movement problem" that -- in the past -- often makes us "goes crazy" now can be "reduced", and could be almost "eliminated".

With that, my Mac can now do "triple function", which would be very much useful today, and in the future:

1. It provide me with tool and stuff that makes my document and data fully ready (and fully compatible) with various other machine that I got.
2. It provide me with tool and stuff that makes my document and data -- and style of working -- probably "ready" for the "future" that soon perhaps going to happen as computer and computing stuff getting cheaper and cheaper (hence, 1 person will work with "many computer" and "any computer" that is within their reach).
3. At the same time my new Mac also provide me with all the great unique and lovely Mac software that allow me to do many other "specific stuff" that is only available on a Mac with style, gesture and experiences that only a Mac system can offer.

How the nature of computer, work, information and data has changed.