Blog Yes & Know

Virtualization in the Real World

Conventional wisdom, in lumping Second Life with MySpace, FaceBook and other social networking sites, dismisses it as merely a social site. By “dismisses” I don’t mean to say that people think as a phenomena it is unimportant and can be ignored, but merely that they think of its impact solely in terms of social interaction. I am more convinced than ever that Second Life is really a new medium of virtualization, and is far more revolutionary than most people realize.

Consumers to Corporations: Where’s My Experience?

With a print job deadline looming, I Googled on Kinko’s, figuring I’d get their number and call before I went over. Clicking again for more information, I was faced with the FedEx landing page. Suddenly, my services and solution were reduced to 8-point type–the most subsidiary of subsidiaries–and the services I wanted were nowhere to be found.

Consumers to Corporations: Where's My Experience?

With a print job deadline looming, I Googled on Kinko’s, figuring I’d get their number and call before I went over. Clicking again for more information, I was faced with the FedEx landing page. Suddenly, my services and solution were reduced to 8-point type–the most subsidiary of subsidiaries–and the services I wanted were nowhere to be found.

Telephony meets the Internet: What it means to you

The Emerging Telephony (eTel) conference brings together the open source and web telephony community. It doesn’t get much attention in the mainstream tech press, but it’s an interesting place for scouting out telephony trends that might affect the tech industry as a whole. We went to this year’s conference. Three themes stood out that deserve your attention:

The Devil Dials Prada

Knowing and understanding various ways to drive growth is tied directly to knowing what market (or segment) you’re serving. If Motorola, Nokia and other firms in the communications industry view themselves as handset makers, that’s actually just the start. For a certain customer segment, handset makers are in the accessories business. Apple’s iPhone is the latest proof that the market is not just about phones but about lifestyle. Apple’s phones are not even in user’s hands yet, but it’s a powerful signal to the industry–ignore design and fashion at your own risk.