Welcome to my new blog powered by Movable Type. This is the first post on my blog and was created for me automatically when I finished the installation process. But that is ok, because I will soon be creating posts of my own!
Recently in Technology Category
So the news today is that Six Apart is going to be the first blog software vendor that will have full integration into Facebook Connect. We can expect Movable Type 4.2 to be released in the coming days or weeks.
It made me want to check out their existing software, Blog It. If you can see this... it worked! =)
It made me want to check out their existing software, Blog It. If you can see this... it worked! =)
Leopard works great with a desktop machine, but it doesn't work well with laptops because you have to keep plugging and unplugging a USB drive. Now he's introducing a new backup station with 802.11n and server-grade backup station. It's an AirPort Extreme station with ports in the back, allowing you to back up your macs wirelessly to Time Capsule.
I have spent the last week fooling around with WordPress 2.3 and Movable Type 4.01 and have been very impressed with the advancements on both platforms.
I come from a background of all blogging software, but recent years have found me tooling around in pMachine and Expression Engine. Many moons ago I first started playing around with the idea of a blog by handrolling HTML (this was the mid 90s), used FrontPage, graduated to GreyMatter, ran Movable Type for 3 years, and then found Ellis and company's pMachine. I have not played with WordPress since 1.5, and it was really to evaluate the platform.
The Andyverse has been run on Expression Engine since that software's release, but recently found some of the functionality lacking for personal blogging. I was running into spam problems and just simple user authentication, so I wanted to move to a smaller option (free works great too).
The goal was to view the playing field once more of options, and it mainly looked like the self-hosted software category had only two other entrants: Movable Type and WordPress. I of course started with Movable Type, it still having a loving place in my heart, and I really like what I see. As do others...
But this Google Trends graph shows the magic is not in action. What happened to the world-wide support for Movable Type? Japan seems the only bastion of loyalty now, and the problem is likely attributed to the infamous v3 release with required payment for anything more than the most basic version of Movable Type. Of course this also happened to coincide with the release of WordPress, a famous '5 minute install,' and notable luminaries in the blogsphere exclaiming their love for open-source and free-as-in-beer philosophy.
If we go back to the article posted at Plasticmind, out-of-box functionality in Movable Type 4 exceeds WordPress 2.3. Even the concerns over paid versions have been trounced, as MT4 is now free-as-in-beer, and a recently announced GPL open-source version will be available without any restrictions in the later part of 2007.
So why the lack of love?
Sex appeal.
WordPress is using all the right bits to make people think it is a slicker application for writing down your thoughts on the web, even if its functionality is more limiting. They have also engaged the community by encouraging development without having to strain themselves. And Automattic has relied on third parties to provide core functionality to the product without having to stretch themselves too thin. By comparison Six Apart has over 100 employees and still took 2 years to roll out a new 4mb blog software package.
This war is being fought with sex appeal, and WordPress seems to have all the right moves. Especially since I can make it do whatever any other package can with extensive plugin support; it just might take a weekend longer than I assumed...
Following on our discussion of the Zune and what it means for consumers going forward, I see a fellow Voxer, Ctrl-Alt-Jim, has written a little about the Zune 30.
His opinion places it squarely as a nice replacement for his iPod, with a nice enough screen for television watching. But right now it does not have podcast support built-in, something that will change in the coming days.
Oh, and the software sucks. Go figure... only from Microsoft. =)
I am likely not alone in confessing that I use Facebook extensively. My daily ventures into meatspace do not have me living by the Facebook IV as some others, but nonetheless it is a wonderful site for contacting friends and acquaintances in-or-out of town on various topics.
The power of these social networks is allowing other people to find you, find your existing friends, and create relationships with new friends (for whatever reason). Originally the site allowed you to see the classes and contact information for other students, but got wise to the power of an entrenched audience and opened the platform to non-.edu email address holders and application developers.
By extending the platform they have been able to lock in revenues from advertisers through increasing retention and attention of customers. If your social networking site also allows you to use Twitter, you will probably stay on Facebook. If you can message your friends through Facebook too, maybe do that instead of email. And if you can share pictures with a group, maybe stay longer instead of trying Flickr
But I do not think the power of information on your friends has been a primary draw for the intended audience. Do you surf Facebook to make sure Kim's cell phone number is up to date, and she is still working at BioMedical Conglomerate? No. No matter what Valleywag says...
Michael Arrington says that Facebook is ready to venture into the professional world (the beyond the locale of Sand Hill Road), but I am not sure that will be the next big evolution of the platform. As the reach extends, functionality will be bolted on that will keep your desktop or mobile address book up to date (Jim got a Gmail account; your next correspondence will go automatically to the new address that was synced to your PIM).
But Facebook still has identity issues as well. The button-up business world sees Facebook as a plaything, and sites like LinkedIn as a professional tool. Merely adding teeth to a sheep makes it no more likely to play with the wolves.
Expectations are high of any business extensions because of ballyhooed valuations of the firm. Should this LinkedIn-like functionality come online soon it will only add fuel to the clamor for a large check... but they had better make it quick. November 5 is quickly approaching. Why would you even care to put your crap in a LinkedIn when you can Google a person and get a business card pulled up with one click. No logins, no steps. Just a name into your search bar and you get a headshot with contact information.
Some of us have already done that (just google Andrew Ruess and you will see what I mean. The first ten pages should have my email address, phone number, and further contact information. November 5 should see OneBox functionality added... awesome!
Update: Brian Solis has the right idea with iinventedfacebook.com. Give us the money!
By extending the platform they have been able to lock in revenues from advertisers through increasing retention and attention of customers. If your social networking site also allows you to use Twitter, you will probably stay on Facebook. If you can message your friends through Facebook too, maybe do that instead of email. And if you can share pictures with a group, maybe stay longer instead of trying Flickr
But I do not think the power of information on your friends has been a primary draw for the intended audience. Do you surf Facebook to make sure Kim's cell phone number is up to date, and she is still working at BioMedical Conglomerate? No. No matter what Valleywag says...
Michael Arrington says that Facebook is ready to venture into the professional world (the beyond the locale of Sand Hill Road), but I am not sure that will be the next big evolution of the platform. As the reach extends, functionality will be bolted on that will keep your desktop or mobile address book up to date (Jim got a Gmail account; your next correspondence will go automatically to the new address that was synced to your PIM).
But Facebook still has identity issues as well. The button-up business world sees Facebook as a plaything, and sites like LinkedIn as a professional tool. Merely adding teeth to a sheep makes it no more likely to play with the wolves.
Expectations are high of any business extensions because of ballyhooed valuations of the firm. Should this LinkedIn-like functionality come online soon it will only add fuel to the clamor for a large check... but they had better make it quick. November 5 is quickly approaching. Why would you even care to put your crap in a LinkedIn when you can Google a person and get a business card pulled up with one click. No logins, no steps. Just a name into your search bar and you get a headshot with contact information.
Some of us have already done that (just google Andrew Ruess and you will see what I mean. The first ten pages should have my email address, phone number, and further contact information. November 5 should see OneBox functionality added... awesome!
Update: Brian Solis has the right idea with iinventedfacebook.com. Give us the money!
The old Zune (now called Zune 30) is getting all of the new features found on the Zune 80 and Zune Flash.
100% software firmware upgrade. Same functionality.
True, it won't be able to get rid of that brown color... but now you can wirelessly sync your Zune 30, the one you bought in November 2006, with your desktop simply by walking back into the house after a drive. No wires to mess with, etc.
For free.
Microsoft did something fantastic here and rewarded the believers who purchased Zunes in the first year by allowing them to get in on all the cool new stuff without having to pay more.
Are you paying attention Apple? This is how you should treat your customers.
So, not only do they get wireless syncing functionality, but they also get built in podcasting support. Microsoft has changed the Zune desktop software so that it is truly a version 2.0 product and not a simple rebadge of the existing WMP10/11 software. Now you will have 1 click podcast subscription onto your XP or Vista machine and then have it get to your Zune in your backpack. Wirelessly.
And the firmware is rebuilt from the ground up. None of the strange bugs that the first version had.
What do we think of this development? Will it lead to more Zunes being sold, or simply maintaining the existing sales forecasts for the Zune 30?
Microsoft did something fantastic here and rewarded the believers who purchased Zunes in the first year by allowing them to get in on all the cool new stuff without having to pay more.
Are you paying attention Apple? This is how you should treat your customers.
So, not only do they get wireless syncing functionality, but they also get built in podcasting support. Microsoft has changed the Zune desktop software so that it is truly a version 2.0 product and not a simple rebadge of the existing WMP10/11 software. Now you will have 1 click podcast subscription onto your XP or Vista machine and then have it get to your Zune in your backpack. Wirelessly.
And the firmware is rebuilt from the ground up. None of the strange bugs that the first version had.
What do we think of this development? Will it lead to more Zunes being sold, or simply maintaining the existing sales forecasts for the Zune 30?
Apple Inc released the Apple TV digital media extender to much fanfare in March. It enables users to sync their computer's iTunes collections across a wireless or wired home network to their living room. Think of the Apple TV as an iPod for your entertainment center. And it works beautifully: music, photos, podcasts, movies, and television shows are now connected to your high definition TV.
Thousands of consumers have bought the Apple TV and enjoyed it thus far for what it already does. But the future of the device might lie in capabilities yet to be announced, delivered over the Internet in software upgrades to the device.
One of the first additions we might see is the direct download and rental/purchase of television shows and movies. The primary constraint on all Apple products is their polish; the idea of streaming, jerky video is something to be avoided at all costs. To overcome that problem in direct downloads the videos will need to watchable within the first few seconds of streaming, requiring a multi-megabit connection to Apple's iTunes store.
It is unlikely Apple will add functionality that requires a purchase-and-wait method to viewing, so look for rental models to exist in the iTunes ecosystem pushed by the MPAA. The idea of having a queue, similar in design to Netflix's patented system, that contains a list of movies you want to watch is high on the list of likely developments. Once a movie is downloaded and watched, it will delete itself and begin streaming the next movie to the Apple TV's drive for future viewing.
Yet the rumors peg Netflix as readying its own set-top box for the living room, something we may see hit the marketplace before years end.
Wow, its been a year since TechCrunch showcased CoComment. I've barely used the service since its inception, but now I'm finding more utility in its existence.
When you're farting around on the web, you tend to leave a trail in the Web 2.0 space. Personal blogs, websites like TechCrunch.com, Flickr, and other such services allow quick comments. And when you make a couple of comments a day...
You can quickly forget what you've talked about. And when people respond to you. Enter CoComment as a solution.
To start using the service you install a Firefox extension and setup an account. Now any time you run to practically any blog, you make a comment as normal and make sure it has a CoComment button near the post button.
When you log in, you see recent conversations. The CoComment system monitors these pages and will index additional comments as they are posted and responses specifically to you. Now you can know when someone responds to you, without having to check the pages yourself. The Firefox extension also automagically notifies you when new comments are available.
As you can see below, it also jumped on the tag cloud of the Web 2.0 shit. I'm not sure why; I don't envision a vibrant community around commenting on other people's comments. I have Technorati and general Google searching to find things of interest to me.
When you log in, you see recent conversations. The CoComment system monitors these pages and will index additional comments as they are posted and responses specifically to you. Now you can know when someone responds to you, without having to check the pages yourself. The Firefox extension also automagically notifies you when new comments are available.
As you can see below, it also jumped on the tag cloud of the Web 2.0 shit. I'm not sure why; I don't envision a vibrant community around commenting on other people's comments. I have Technorati and general Google searching to find things of interest to me.
