Okay, we're a bit premature here. But that might happen if one analyst's prognostications are true. According to an Electronista report, Shaw Wu of Kaufman Bros. is predicting that Dell is getting closer to launching its first smart phone, although no date has been set for the roll out. While Dell has played down the rumors, industry watchers have noted that the PC maker recently hired a former Motorola mobile phone exec to helm its global consumer products group.
Rumors of Dell's smart phone intentions have been swirling for many months, in fact. Reports from early last year had Dell working with Foxconn Group to develop handsets based on the Windows Mobile OS, and Dell vowed to roll out an iPod competitor. However, those projects may have hit the pause button, as Dell announced last fall that it wouldn't have an MP3 player ready for the holiday season.
Given the stunning success of the Apple's iPhone, the positive buzz generated by Palm's Pre and its clever webOS at last week's Consumer Electronics Show, and a growing number of Google Android devices, Dell knows it had better act-and fast.
But whose mobile OS should Dell use? Apple and RIM have designed their own in-house software-and done an excellent job of it-but building operating systems isn't exactly Dell's forte. Windows Mobile is the odds-on favorite, or Dell may have to go out and purchase a software maker. Whatever it does, Dell will have to launch one impressive handset to stand out in a very competitive market. Whether it can remains to be seen.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Diving Headfirst into Windows Beta 7
Well, I did it. I made the move. Got off the fence. Took the plunge. Or, as my English language-challenged friend at State Bank of Mauritius would put it, I "did the necessary."
After thoroughly backing up my Vista x64 production laptop -- including redundant, manual copies of my data files, plus a full system image via Complete PC Backup -- I paved over the disk and installed the official Windows 7 Beta (64-bit edition).
[ For more help sorting through the early Win 7 benchmarks, check out InfoWorld's special report. ]
I've actually been sitting on the beta bits since before the Christmas break. However, I didn't want to commit totally until I could snag a working Product ID code or two from the Microsoft servers. Now, with my fully configured and activated Windows 7 environment in place, it's time to survey the landscape...and start complaining.
For starters, when will Microsoft get its act together and deliver ISO image-mounting support in Windows? It seems like anytime the OS is updated (we early Vista users were in this same boat three years ago), all of the best third-party mounting tools get broken.
Daemon Tools? Won't even install.
Virtual Clone Drive? Buggy and unstable (check their forums).
Fortunately, I was able to use VCD just long enough to get my major work titles (SQL Server 2008, Visual Studio 2008, Office 2007, and their respective service packs) installed from my MSDN ISO images. However, after the umpteenth random lock-up, I finally pulled Slysoft's normally well-behaved mounting utility from the system. I may give Alcohol 52% a try, but at this point I'm not optimistic.
And, frankly, I shouldn't have to be. This is the kind of base-level functionality that's supposed to be baked into the OS. Microsoft did it with VHD images. It can do it with ISO images as well. Heaven knows these folks distribute enough software in this format. MSDN and TechNet users pay good money for this stuff. The least Microsoft can do is provide a simple mechanism for mounting the images at runtime.
Note to Microsoft: Put a couple of those supersmart engineers on this, pronto! And while you're at it, have them back-port the solution to Vista and XP. Think of it as a kind of penance for putting us all through this same ISO-mounting hell again.
Also, what's the deal with Skype? Version 3.8 is still completely hosed under Windows 7. It won't connect to the peer-to-peer network and crashes mere seconds after loading. I'm now forced to use the butt-ugly Skype 4 beta. Truly a painful experience!
Finally, who screwed up Internet Explorer's networking? If I have more than one NIC enabled on the system (for example, one of the VMware Workstation virtual adapters or even Microsoft's own Loopback driver), IE takes forever to load. And once it is loaded, opening new tabs is painfully slow. If I then disable the extra adapters (so only my one primary wireless connection remains), the problem disappears. So, it's clearly related to those multiple NIC drivers.
Other nits:
• Chrome (both 1.x and the newer 2.x pre-beta) didn't work at first under the x64-bit edition. I had to add the "—in-process-plugins" parameter to get it to load properly. Given my issues with IE, mentioned above, the inability to run Chrome properly was nearly a deal-breaker for me. Bullet dodged.
• The Intel 5300-series Wi-Fi connection on my Dell Precision M6400 test bed refused to wake up after a suspend/resume cycle. I had to disable power management for the device in order to regain my sanity. Of course, this means the system's battery life takes a hit, but it's better than having my laptop go "deaf" every time I put it to sleep.
• My tray icons keep disappearing! No matter how many times I tell Windows to leave them visible, it inevitably starts hiding one or more of them for no apparent reason. I've had to resort to disabling the notification icon hide function altogether and leaving them all visible, all the time. Very annoying.
• Those snazzy new Task Bar thumbnails don't always show the updated window contents. For example, when I check to see the status of a download in Free Download Manager, I often find that what the thumbnail shows and what's really in the status window (time remaining, bytes downloaded, etc.) are entirely different.
• What's with the hide-and-seek game for legacy features? The Add Hardware Wizard, which I use to install the aforementioned Loopback adapter, is now missing from Device Manager. You have to launch it from the Start Menu search box (filename is hdwwiz.exe). Also, the graphic equalizer in Windows Media Player is now buried in an unmarked, drop-down menu button thingy in the Now Playing view. Had to hit up Google to figure that one out.
On the plus side, Windows 7 definitely feels crisper than Vista. The UI is highly responsive, though I wonder how much of this is just smoke and mirrors (e.g., the Windows animation speed for minimizing/maximizing seems to be set higher under Windows 7) since benchmarks show that the system is actually performing about the same. Regardless, it's a fresh departure from my uneven Vista experience. And I'm really digging the new task bar, especially the various Aero "peek" functions. Definitely one of the more poorly understood features of the new Windows.
Bottom Line: Bugs or no, I think I'll stick around for a while -- if for no other reason than I really like that new task bar. Once you fully embrace it -- and this means using the default configuration with the big, grouped icons and no text labels -- you'll find that it's quite a bit more efficient to use than the old task bar.
I'll talk more about this next week. In the meantime, good luck downloading those beta bits!
After thoroughly backing up my Vista x64 production laptop -- including redundant, manual copies of my data files, plus a full system image via Complete PC Backup -- I paved over the disk and installed the official Windows 7 Beta (64-bit edition).
[ For more help sorting through the early Win 7 benchmarks, check out InfoWorld's special report. ]
I've actually been sitting on the beta bits since before the Christmas break. However, I didn't want to commit totally until I could snag a working Product ID code or two from the Microsoft servers. Now, with my fully configured and activated Windows 7 environment in place, it's time to survey the landscape...and start complaining.
For starters, when will Microsoft get its act together and deliver ISO image-mounting support in Windows? It seems like anytime the OS is updated (we early Vista users were in this same boat three years ago), all of the best third-party mounting tools get broken.
Daemon Tools? Won't even install.
Virtual Clone Drive? Buggy and unstable (check their forums).
Fortunately, I was able to use VCD just long enough to get my major work titles (SQL Server 2008, Visual Studio 2008, Office 2007, and their respective service packs) installed from my MSDN ISO images. However, after the umpteenth random lock-up, I finally pulled Slysoft's normally well-behaved mounting utility from the system. I may give Alcohol 52% a try, but at this point I'm not optimistic.
And, frankly, I shouldn't have to be. This is the kind of base-level functionality that's supposed to be baked into the OS. Microsoft did it with VHD images. It can do it with ISO images as well. Heaven knows these folks distribute enough software in this format. MSDN and TechNet users pay good money for this stuff. The least Microsoft can do is provide a simple mechanism for mounting the images at runtime.
Note to Microsoft: Put a couple of those supersmart engineers on this, pronto! And while you're at it, have them back-port the solution to Vista and XP. Think of it as a kind of penance for putting us all through this same ISO-mounting hell again.
Also, what's the deal with Skype? Version 3.8 is still completely hosed under Windows 7. It won't connect to the peer-to-peer network and crashes mere seconds after loading. I'm now forced to use the butt-ugly Skype 4 beta. Truly a painful experience!
Finally, who screwed up Internet Explorer's networking? If I have more than one NIC enabled on the system (for example, one of the VMware Workstation virtual adapters or even Microsoft's own Loopback driver), IE takes forever to load. And once it is loaded, opening new tabs is painfully slow. If I then disable the extra adapters (so only my one primary wireless connection remains), the problem disappears. So, it's clearly related to those multiple NIC drivers.
Other nits:
• Chrome (both 1.x and the newer 2.x pre-beta) didn't work at first under the x64-bit edition. I had to add the "—in-process-plugins" parameter to get it to load properly. Given my issues with IE, mentioned above, the inability to run Chrome properly was nearly a deal-breaker for me. Bullet dodged.
• The Intel 5300-series Wi-Fi connection on my Dell Precision M6400 test bed refused to wake up after a suspend/resume cycle. I had to disable power management for the device in order to regain my sanity. Of course, this means the system's battery life takes a hit, but it's better than having my laptop go "deaf" every time I put it to sleep.
• My tray icons keep disappearing! No matter how many times I tell Windows to leave them visible, it inevitably starts hiding one or more of them for no apparent reason. I've had to resort to disabling the notification icon hide function altogether and leaving them all visible, all the time. Very annoying.
• Those snazzy new Task Bar thumbnails don't always show the updated window contents. For example, when I check to see the status of a download in Free Download Manager, I often find that what the thumbnail shows and what's really in the status window (time remaining, bytes downloaded, etc.) are entirely different.
• What's with the hide-and-seek game for legacy features? The Add Hardware Wizard, which I use to install the aforementioned Loopback adapter, is now missing from Device Manager. You have to launch it from the Start Menu search box (filename is hdwwiz.exe). Also, the graphic equalizer in Windows Media Player is now buried in an unmarked, drop-down menu button thingy in the Now Playing view. Had to hit up Google to figure that one out.
On the plus side, Windows 7 definitely feels crisper than Vista. The UI is highly responsive, though I wonder how much of this is just smoke and mirrors (e.g., the Windows animation speed for minimizing/maximizing seems to be set higher under Windows 7) since benchmarks show that the system is actually performing about the same. Regardless, it's a fresh departure from my uneven Vista experience. And I'm really digging the new task bar, especially the various Aero "peek" functions. Definitely one of the more poorly understood features of the new Windows.
Bottom Line: Bugs or no, I think I'll stick around for a while -- if for no other reason than I really like that new task bar. Once you fully embrace it -- and this means using the default configuration with the big, grouped icons and no text labels -- you'll find that it's quite a bit more efficient to use than the old task bar.
I'll talk more about this next week. In the meantime, good luck downloading those beta bits!
Friday, January 9, 2009
Intel-backed Enterprise 2.0 Suite Is Discontinued
An Intel-backed suite of Enterprise 2.0 software announced with much fanfare a bit over two years ago is being put out to pasture.
SuiteTwo, announced in November 2006 at an O'Reilly Media Web 2.0 show, is no longer being sold, and its maintenance period for existing customers will close at the end of this year.
"We're going through the end-of-life process for SuiteTwo," said Dominic Sartorio, senior director of product management at SpikeSource, Intel's lead partner in the effort.
When it was announced, SuiteTwo was seen as concrete proof that CIOs, IT directors and business managers had begun seriously considering the use of Web 2.0 technology in their workplaces.
In a bundle integrated and maintained by SpikeSource, SuiteTwo included blog publishing software from Six Apart, RSS content syndication software from NewsGator, and SimpleFeed and wiki software from Socialtext.
Backing the project was Intel Capital, Intel's venture capital arm, while Intel's Software and Solutions Group would hawk it through its large OEM (original equipment manufacturer) and reseller channels. Tech Data was later brought in to help with fulfillment. SuiteTwo could be bought as packaged software, hosted software or pre-loaded into a hardware appliance.
SpikeSource has notified the about 80 companies that use SuiteTwo regarding the phaseout and will provide migration assistance to them, Sartorio said. "We're going to be there to help customers, advise them, to do what's right for their deployments and users," he said.
One customer that will seek migration assistance from SpikeSource is Clinical Trial Semantics Inc. CTSi uses SuiteTwo as a key part of its project to build a Web-based system to help cancer patients discuss with their doctors appropriate clinical trials they can consider participating in as part of their treatment.
"We probably over-invested in a platform that clearly didn't have the user base," said CTSi CEO Etienne Taylor.
So far, SpikeSource has been a very responsive vendor to CTSi during the year or so that the nonprofit has been using SuiteTwo.
"Their professional services department has helped us way above and beyond the economics of having us as a customer," Taylor said. "They've been wonderful."
However, one thing SpikeSource didn't do was alert CTSi about its plans to phase out SuiteTwo. "They forgot us. Nothing personal, I'm sure," Taylor said with a chuckle.
For now, SuiteTwo has served its purpose very well in the project's first stage of development, and CTSi, which is working with the American Cancer Society, can see viable migration options, Taylor said. "It's kind of OK. A lot will depend on what we do next with SpikeSource."
The concept behind SuiteTwo was right, said Forrester Research analyst Oliver Young. Companies are adopting blogs, wikis, enterprise RSS and other Web 2.0 technologies to improve collaboration and communication among their employees, partners and customers. "The market has moved in that direction pretty aggressively," he said.
"The problem with SuiteTwo wasn't the idea. The problem was the execution. They were trying to cobble together products from five or six independent companies, and it never looked like anything more than a bunch of applications that were duck-taped together," Young said.
Consequently, after its initial splash, SuiteTwo didn't get nearly as much attention from potential customers as its capabilities would have otherwise merited, and it became a sideshow for the partner vendors involved as well, Young said.
"SuiteTwo had a lot of great ideas [behind it] but there were shortcomings in the implementation and go-to-market strategies," said Brian Kellner, NewsGator's vice president of product management.
SimpleFeed's CEO Mark Carlson concurs. "All of our involvement pretty much stopped three or four months after the initial SuiteTwo announcement," he said.
While SuiteTwo failed to gain traction, vendor partners like NewsGator and Socialtext noticed that demand for a suite like that was real and expanded their own offerings beyond their niche areas to offer more comprehensive collaboration and communication functionality.
"We started seeing that the social side of our solutions had a lot of value to offer and we started going down that path," Kellner said.
For example, in expanding beyond their original niches, SocialText and NewsGator have replicated not only the SuiteTwo components but also newer ones, like workplace social networking, activity notification feeds and Twitter-like microblogging status updates.
"It was difficult for example in the SuiteTwo architecture to get a notification that someone had posted a new blog post, or that someone had updated a wiki page, or to pass information back and forth between the various solutions. It was a lot of work," Kellner said.
There are no hard feelings between the SuiteTwo partners and SpikeSource, whose migration plans for SuiteTwo include steering customers toward the partners. Since SuiteTwo is a superset of partners' software products, migration should be straightforward, he said.
Forrester's Young agrees. "The underlying products in SuiteTwo and their vendors are still here and innovating. It shouldn't be hard for a SuiteTwo customer to go to these vendors and put the thing back together," Young said.
Young's advice is for SuiteTwo customers to identify which component is delivering the most value for them and approach that vendor first.
SpikeSource pulled the plug on SuiteTwo in part because it wasn't in its best interest to focus on any particular software market segment, such as enterprise 2.0 products, CRM (customer relationship management) or content management, but rather to stick to its strengths: to assist ISVs with services like code testing, software maintenance and development.
As such, SpikeSource is focusing on its new Solutions Factory, launched in April 2008 and described as an automated platform for assembling, testing, packaging, certifying and updating software from ISVs. Along with the Solutions Factory launch, SpikeSource also announced that it had closed a new round of funding led by Intel Capital. Intel also uses SpikeSource's Solutions Factory services in its Intel Software Partner Program, Sartorio said.
Ironically, Intel still seems interested in Enterprise 2.0, judging by a demo of a workplace social-networking system that its CEO, Paul Otellini, gave in November at the Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco, two years after SuiteTwo's introduction.
The demoed system included Web-based enterprise collaboration tools for social networking, blogging, wikis, online meetings and syndicated feeds. A company like Intel, with 86,000 employees worldwide, would put such a system to good use to let staffers better collaborate, obtain training and education, and find the data they need to do their jobs, he said.
Such a social-networking system for the workplace, which would require strong security and control features for IT departments, doesn't exist, he said. "I don't see any company really addressing this," Otellini said.
Maybe Otellini never paid close attention to SuiteTwo, which could have very well become such a system. Intel declined to comment about SuiteTwo.
Actually, if he moves quickly, Otellini might still be able to place an order for SuiteTwo: At press time, SpikeSource hadn't yet updated the SuiteTwo Web site to indicate that the product is being discontinued, and its ordering page remained online as well.
Asked for further information about the enterprise social-networking system Otellini had demoed, an Intel spokesman said in an e-mail that it had been "a mock-up done for the sole purpose of his keynote, with no plans to productize."
At his company's Web 2.0 Summit show floor booth in November, an amused Ross Mayfield, CEO of Socialtext, remarked: "We've had a lot of people rushing to our booth as a result of the Intel presentation."
SuiteTwo, announced in November 2006 at an O'Reilly Media Web 2.0 show, is no longer being sold, and its maintenance period for existing customers will close at the end of this year.
"We're going through the end-of-life process for SuiteTwo," said Dominic Sartorio, senior director of product management at SpikeSource, Intel's lead partner in the effort.
When it was announced, SuiteTwo was seen as concrete proof that CIOs, IT directors and business managers had begun seriously considering the use of Web 2.0 technology in their workplaces.
In a bundle integrated and maintained by SpikeSource, SuiteTwo included blog publishing software from Six Apart, RSS content syndication software from NewsGator, and SimpleFeed and wiki software from Socialtext.
Backing the project was Intel Capital, Intel's venture capital arm, while Intel's Software and Solutions Group would hawk it through its large OEM (original equipment manufacturer) and reseller channels. Tech Data was later brought in to help with fulfillment. SuiteTwo could be bought as packaged software, hosted software or pre-loaded into a hardware appliance.
SpikeSource has notified the about 80 companies that use SuiteTwo regarding the phaseout and will provide migration assistance to them, Sartorio said. "We're going to be there to help customers, advise them, to do what's right for their deployments and users," he said.
One customer that will seek migration assistance from SpikeSource is Clinical Trial Semantics Inc. CTSi uses SuiteTwo as a key part of its project to build a Web-based system to help cancer patients discuss with their doctors appropriate clinical trials they can consider participating in as part of their treatment.
"We probably over-invested in a platform that clearly didn't have the user base," said CTSi CEO Etienne Taylor.
So far, SpikeSource has been a very responsive vendor to CTSi during the year or so that the nonprofit has been using SuiteTwo.
"Their professional services department has helped us way above and beyond the economics of having us as a customer," Taylor said. "They've been wonderful."
However, one thing SpikeSource didn't do was alert CTSi about its plans to phase out SuiteTwo. "They forgot us. Nothing personal, I'm sure," Taylor said with a chuckle.
For now, SuiteTwo has served its purpose very well in the project's first stage of development, and CTSi, which is working with the American Cancer Society, can see viable migration options, Taylor said. "It's kind of OK. A lot will depend on what we do next with SpikeSource."
The concept behind SuiteTwo was right, said Forrester Research analyst Oliver Young. Companies are adopting blogs, wikis, enterprise RSS and other Web 2.0 technologies to improve collaboration and communication among their employees, partners and customers. "The market has moved in that direction pretty aggressively," he said.
"The problem with SuiteTwo wasn't the idea. The problem was the execution. They were trying to cobble together products from five or six independent companies, and it never looked like anything more than a bunch of applications that were duck-taped together," Young said.
Consequently, after its initial splash, SuiteTwo didn't get nearly as much attention from potential customers as its capabilities would have otherwise merited, and it became a sideshow for the partner vendors involved as well, Young said.
"SuiteTwo had a lot of great ideas [behind it] but there were shortcomings in the implementation and go-to-market strategies," said Brian Kellner, NewsGator's vice president of product management.
SimpleFeed's CEO Mark Carlson concurs. "All of our involvement pretty much stopped three or four months after the initial SuiteTwo announcement," he said.
While SuiteTwo failed to gain traction, vendor partners like NewsGator and Socialtext noticed that demand for a suite like that was real and expanded their own offerings beyond their niche areas to offer more comprehensive collaboration and communication functionality.
"We started seeing that the social side of our solutions had a lot of value to offer and we started going down that path," Kellner said.
For example, in expanding beyond their original niches, SocialText and NewsGator have replicated not only the SuiteTwo components but also newer ones, like workplace social networking, activity notification feeds and Twitter-like microblogging status updates.
"It was difficult for example in the SuiteTwo architecture to get a notification that someone had posted a new blog post, or that someone had updated a wiki page, or to pass information back and forth between the various solutions. It was a lot of work," Kellner said.
There are no hard feelings between the SuiteTwo partners and SpikeSource, whose migration plans for SuiteTwo include steering customers toward the partners. Since SuiteTwo is a superset of partners' software products, migration should be straightforward, he said.
Forrester's Young agrees. "The underlying products in SuiteTwo and their vendors are still here and innovating. It shouldn't be hard for a SuiteTwo customer to go to these vendors and put the thing back together," Young said.
Young's advice is for SuiteTwo customers to identify which component is delivering the most value for them and approach that vendor first.
SpikeSource pulled the plug on SuiteTwo in part because it wasn't in its best interest to focus on any particular software market segment, such as enterprise 2.0 products, CRM (customer relationship management) or content management, but rather to stick to its strengths: to assist ISVs with services like code testing, software maintenance and development.
As such, SpikeSource is focusing on its new Solutions Factory, launched in April 2008 and described as an automated platform for assembling, testing, packaging, certifying and updating software from ISVs. Along with the Solutions Factory launch, SpikeSource also announced that it had closed a new round of funding led by Intel Capital. Intel also uses SpikeSource's Solutions Factory services in its Intel Software Partner Program, Sartorio said.
Ironically, Intel still seems interested in Enterprise 2.0, judging by a demo of a workplace social-networking system that its CEO, Paul Otellini, gave in November at the Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco, two years after SuiteTwo's introduction.
The demoed system included Web-based enterprise collaboration tools for social networking, blogging, wikis, online meetings and syndicated feeds. A company like Intel, with 86,000 employees worldwide, would put such a system to good use to let staffers better collaborate, obtain training and education, and find the data they need to do their jobs, he said.
Such a social-networking system for the workplace, which would require strong security and control features for IT departments, doesn't exist, he said. "I don't see any company really addressing this," Otellini said.
Maybe Otellini never paid close attention to SuiteTwo, which could have very well become such a system. Intel declined to comment about SuiteTwo.
Actually, if he moves quickly, Otellini might still be able to place an order for SuiteTwo: At press time, SpikeSource hadn't yet updated the SuiteTwo Web site to indicate that the product is being discontinued, and its ordering page remained online as well.
Asked for further information about the enterprise social-networking system Otellini had demoed, an Intel spokesman said in an e-mail that it had been "a mock-up done for the sole purpose of his keynote, with no plans to productize."
At his company's Web 2.0 Summit show floor booth in November, an amused Ross Mayfield, CEO of Socialtext, remarked: "We've had a lot of people rushing to our booth as a result of the Intel presentation."
Monday, January 5, 2009
Lenovo Brings Wii Functionality to PCs
Taking a page from Nintendo's Wii gaming console, Lenovo on Monday announced an all-in-one PC with a remote control that doubles as a motion-based gaming controller.
Like the iMac, the all-in-one IdeaCentre A600 combines a monitor and CPU in a thin system. It will be on display at the Consumer Electronics Show from January 8 to 11 in Las Vegas.
Its wireless remote control is similar to Nintendo Wii's Wii Remote, which allows users to interact with a video game by waving or pointing the game controller. Using motion-sensing technology, the Wii Remote becomes a racket when swinging during a tennis game, or a weapon when playing a fighting game.
Lenovo's gadget mimics the Wii's approach.
"We have an example of a bowling game [where] you can wave the remote and that actually controls your game," said Ninis Samuel, director of marketing strategy and programs.
The company is bundling some motion-based games with the PC to use with the remote-based gaming controller. Titles of the games weren't immediately available.
Lenovo is trying to capitalize on the trend of entertainment options merging into the PC. Few are able to play motion-based games, which could make this motion-based game controller a pioneer.
In addition to controlling TV functions and video recordings on the PC, the remote control can also be used as an air mouse that moves the mouse pointer when waved. It has some advantages over a conventional mouse -- it can function without being on a surface and be used at a distance -- when sitting on a couch, for example.
If the air mouse wasn't enough, the remote also works as a VOIP (voice over Internet protocol) handset. "If you have telephony software on your PC like Windows Live or Skype, you can use your remote to make those phone calls because it essentially can act as a phone," Samuel said.
The IdeaCentre A600 starts at a price of US$999. The desktop has a 21.5-inch screen that supports 1920 by 1280-pixel resolution for high-definition video playback. It runs on Intel Pentium Dual Core or Core 2 Duo mobile processors, supports up to 4GB of RAM and up to 1TB of storage. It includes Wi-Fi wireless networking and runs on the Windows Vista OS.
Options include the remote control, Blu-ray DVD player, a TV tuner and a Advanced Micro Devices' ATI graphics card. The desktop will be available worldwide by the beginning of March.
The desktop is part of a new portfolio of entertainment PCs that Lenovo plans to show at CES. The company is also rolling out a new laptop line, the IdeaPad Y series, which is targeted at mainstream users looking to create and view multimedia content. Lenovo has added features that can make watching movies an easier and enjoyable experience.
For example, the laptops have the "OneKey" feature, in which pressing one button "optimizes" the experience of watching movies by enhancing the sound and visuals, according to the company.
Another feature includes ambient light sensors that adjusts screen brightness based on the user's surroundings. "[It] uses a sensor on the actual lid of the laptop that senses whether or not you are in a darker or lighter room. Then it adjusts the brightness and the graphics to your environment," Samuel said. The feature is available only in the IdeaPad Y650 laptop, which has a 16-inch screen.
The IdeaPad Y series laptops come with screens ranging from 14 to 16 inches, run on Intel Core 2 Duo processors and include Windows Vista. The weight of the laptops ranges from 4.6 pounds (2.09 kilograms) to 6 pounds. The laptops will become available worldwide by the beginning of March, Lenovo said. Pricing was not immediately available.
Like the iMac, the all-in-one IdeaCentre A600 combines a monitor and CPU in a thin system. It will be on display at the Consumer Electronics Show from January 8 to 11 in Las Vegas.
Its wireless remote control is similar to Nintendo Wii's Wii Remote, which allows users to interact with a video game by waving or pointing the game controller. Using motion-sensing technology, the Wii Remote becomes a racket when swinging during a tennis game, or a weapon when playing a fighting game.
Lenovo's gadget mimics the Wii's approach.
"We have an example of a bowling game [where] you can wave the remote and that actually controls your game," said Ninis Samuel, director of marketing strategy and programs.
The company is bundling some motion-based games with the PC to use with the remote-based gaming controller. Titles of the games weren't immediately available.
Lenovo is trying to capitalize on the trend of entertainment options merging into the PC. Few are able to play motion-based games, which could make this motion-based game controller a pioneer.
In addition to controlling TV functions and video recordings on the PC, the remote control can also be used as an air mouse that moves the mouse pointer when waved. It has some advantages over a conventional mouse -- it can function without being on a surface and be used at a distance -- when sitting on a couch, for example.
If the air mouse wasn't enough, the remote also works as a VOIP (voice over Internet protocol) handset. "If you have telephony software on your PC like Windows Live or Skype, you can use your remote to make those phone calls because it essentially can act as a phone," Samuel said.
The IdeaCentre A600 starts at a price of US$999. The desktop has a 21.5-inch screen that supports 1920 by 1280-pixel resolution for high-definition video playback. It runs on Intel Pentium Dual Core or Core 2 Duo mobile processors, supports up to 4GB of RAM and up to 1TB of storage. It includes Wi-Fi wireless networking and runs on the Windows Vista OS.
Options include the remote control, Blu-ray DVD player, a TV tuner and a Advanced Micro Devices' ATI graphics card. The desktop will be available worldwide by the beginning of March.
The desktop is part of a new portfolio of entertainment PCs that Lenovo plans to show at CES. The company is also rolling out a new laptop line, the IdeaPad Y series, which is targeted at mainstream users looking to create and view multimedia content. Lenovo has added features that can make watching movies an easier and enjoyable experience.
For example, the laptops have the "OneKey" feature, in which pressing one button "optimizes" the experience of watching movies by enhancing the sound and visuals, according to the company.
Another feature includes ambient light sensors that adjusts screen brightness based on the user's surroundings. "[It] uses a sensor on the actual lid of the laptop that senses whether or not you are in a darker or lighter room. Then it adjusts the brightness and the graphics to your environment," Samuel said. The feature is available only in the IdeaPad Y650 laptop, which has a 16-inch screen.
The IdeaPad Y series laptops come with screens ranging from 14 to 16 inches, run on Intel Core 2 Duo processors and include Windows Vista. The weight of the laptops ranges from 4.6 pounds (2.09 kilograms) to 6 pounds. The laptops will become available worldwide by the beginning of March, Lenovo said. Pricing was not immediately available.
How to Succeed in Tech in a Downturn
The economy is in trouble -- everywhere. Even outsourced providers are nervous. Already under stress, IT staffers see their jobs getting more and more difficult as they must do more with less, all while wondering if they'll keep their jobs at all.
That's why you need a plan for your tech career. The worst thing you can do is give up or panic. Although tech jobs are under increasing pressure, the reality is that the technology jobs market overall is still doing better than the market for other types of jobs. That doesn't mean you're immune from layoffs, stagnant salaries, or increasing workloads, but it does mean you have more options than many other workers -- if you're willing to be flexible.
[ InfoWorld has put together a special package of stories to help IT workers through the current tough times. Among the highlights: * Slideshow: Where IT jobs are headed * Special report: 2009 IT career survival guide * Special report: Where the tech jobs are overseas (and how to get one) * Special report: Tech workers under fire * Special report: IT and the financial crisis * Get sage advice on IT careers and management from Bob Lewis in InfoWorld's Advice Line blog and newsletter. ]
First, the bad news on tech jobs. There's plenty of data to support the fears that many tech workers have about their job security and ability to make ends meet. For example, more than 50,000 tech workers lost their jobs before the financial meltdown hit, and more jobs are in danger.
That trend translates to income pain for even the survivors. According to the 2008 salary survey by our sister publication Computerworld, bonuses for IT workers rose only 0.2 percent from 2007 levels. At a time when 3 to 4 percent salary raises are failing to keep up with inflation rates that are rising above 5 percent, those dwindling bonuses are making tough times even more challenging for IT professionals.
And stress levels are up. That same Computerworld survey shows that only 14 percent of respondents did not feel more stressed than a year earlier. Shrinking budgets are one reason. "Companies are in the mind-set of not spending in the next 3 months and increasing only 1 or 2 percent in the next 12 months. That's quite a change from last year when it was between 7 and 8 percent," notes Steve Minton, vice president of worldwide IT markets at IDC.
Having desirable tech skills is keyThe United States and Europe appear to be especially hard hit, though the downturn is being felt worldwide. Still, tech workers might consider moving to China, Canada, or other stronger markets where the demand for IT skills -- and the opportunities to develop new ones -- remains good. A move abroad may also give you more than technical skills: It can make you more appealing to companies that have global teams, an increasing reality everywhere.
To remain competitive, IT workers need a combination of the 30 essential basic skills -- including, according to one survey, strong ethics and morals -- and abilities in emerging recession-proof areas where demand remains high, such as security, VoIP, and wireless. And don't forget about not-so-hot areas that are critical to companies' abilities to keep running: Cobol skills can be great job insurance, for example. Also, look to certain skills that have been hot for a while and, thus, tend to be neglected, such as open source, .Net, and Java.
Certifications also can help, especially management ones. But beware: Certifications are not equally valuable. Some are simply expected -- and may be necessary to even be considered for a job -- while others are superfluous. That's especially true for technical certifications; outside of security and networking, they're not proving that valuable. Those that tend to give you an edge involve management and business-specific training -- skills that business managers more easily understand than technical ones.
That's why you need a plan for your tech career. The worst thing you can do is give up or panic. Although tech jobs are under increasing pressure, the reality is that the technology jobs market overall is still doing better than the market for other types of jobs. That doesn't mean you're immune from layoffs, stagnant salaries, or increasing workloads, but it does mean you have more options than many other workers -- if you're willing to be flexible.
[ InfoWorld has put together a special package of stories to help IT workers through the current tough times. Among the highlights: * Slideshow: Where IT jobs are headed * Special report: 2009 IT career survival guide * Special report: Where the tech jobs are overseas (and how to get one) * Special report: Tech workers under fire * Special report: IT and the financial crisis * Get sage advice on IT careers and management from Bob Lewis in InfoWorld's Advice Line blog and newsletter. ]
First, the bad news on tech jobs. There's plenty of data to support the fears that many tech workers have about their job security and ability to make ends meet. For example, more than 50,000 tech workers lost their jobs before the financial meltdown hit, and more jobs are in danger.
That trend translates to income pain for even the survivors. According to the 2008 salary survey by our sister publication Computerworld, bonuses for IT workers rose only 0.2 percent from 2007 levels. At a time when 3 to 4 percent salary raises are failing to keep up with inflation rates that are rising above 5 percent, those dwindling bonuses are making tough times even more challenging for IT professionals.
And stress levels are up. That same Computerworld survey shows that only 14 percent of respondents did not feel more stressed than a year earlier. Shrinking budgets are one reason. "Companies are in the mind-set of not spending in the next 3 months and increasing only 1 or 2 percent in the next 12 months. That's quite a change from last year when it was between 7 and 8 percent," notes Steve Minton, vice president of worldwide IT markets at IDC.
Having desirable tech skills is keyThe United States and Europe appear to be especially hard hit, though the downturn is being felt worldwide. Still, tech workers might consider moving to China, Canada, or other stronger markets where the demand for IT skills -- and the opportunities to develop new ones -- remains good. A move abroad may also give you more than technical skills: It can make you more appealing to companies that have global teams, an increasing reality everywhere.
To remain competitive, IT workers need a combination of the 30 essential basic skills -- including, according to one survey, strong ethics and morals -- and abilities in emerging recession-proof areas where demand remains high, such as security, VoIP, and wireless. And don't forget about not-so-hot areas that are critical to companies' abilities to keep running: Cobol skills can be great job insurance, for example. Also, look to certain skills that have been hot for a while and, thus, tend to be neglected, such as open source, .Net, and Java.
Certifications also can help, especially management ones. But beware: Certifications are not equally valuable. Some are simply expected -- and may be necessary to even be considered for a job -- while others are superfluous. That's especially true for technical certifications; outside of security and networking, they're not proving that valuable. Those that tend to give you an edge involve management and business-specific training -- skills that business managers more easily understand than technical ones.
Going Green to Save the Green
Could saving the Earth -- and your company's bottom line -- be as simple as using fresh air to cool your data center?
It's not quite that simple, but it can be one step toward those goals, because companies that use natural air to cool their facilities are seeing big benefits on both the environmental and financial fronts. In fact, IT leaders, analysts and environmental advocates say there are plenty of opportunities for tech organizations to create more Earth-friendly operations that cut energy needs and slash a company's carbon footprint while saving money, too.
But many organizations still aren't capitalizing on such initiatives -- even the ones that are relatively easy and inexpensive to implement.
IT executives who responded to Computerworld 's annual Forecast survey seem to echo that reluctance. Nearly half (42%) said their IT departments have no plans to launch projects in the next 12 months to reduce energy consumption or carbon emissions, and nearly three quarters reported no plans to create committees to oversee energy-saving initiatives.
Yet experts say organizations that ignore green computing now are going to have to catch up if they want to stay competitive. "The green issue is not going to go away. There's too much at stake," says Rakesh Kumar, an analyst at Gartner Inc.
That's not to say IT leaders don't have their reasons for staying away from green computing. Kumar says some of them think it's a fad. Christopher Mines, an analyst at Forrester Research Inc., says others believe global warming is a crock and that there's no need to act on the issue, or they see green as merely increasing expenses.
Many others are nervous about reworking established systems and processes. "The last thing these people want to do is take a screwdriver to IT processes that work and start re-engineering them to make them more efficient," Mines says.
Early Adopters
Increasingly, however, IT leaders and other executives are putting aside such concerns and pushing for green IT initiatives.
When IDC surveyed 300 CEOs for its September 2008 "U.S. Green IT Survey," 44% of the respondents said that IT will play a very important role in their organizations' efforts to reduce their environmental impact. Compare that to the 2007 survey, in which only 14% of CEOs said they felt that way.
The 2008 survey also showed that energy costs were the most pressing reason for the adoption of green IT.
"We don't see many or indeed any companies that are hesitant to explore green IT projects," IDC analyst Vernon Turner wrote in an e-mail on this topic. "In fact, the scary thing is where to start, and it may be that reason why there is somewhat a feeling of lost souls. There has been a lot of marketing by the IT vendor community around green, and I think that CEOs and CIOs are 'green-washed' by it."
To be sure, developing enterprisewide green policies is a major undertaking. On the other hand, IT departments can implement some green IT initiatives without reworking entire policies, processes and procedures -- and without spending a lot of cash.
Moreover, they can sell management on these projects based not just on the initiatives' environmental merits but on their financial rewards as well.
"A lot of stuff is going to give you a short-term payback," Kumar says. He says that given today's economy, CIOs should focus on green initiatives that will have paybacks well within 18 months. Projects with such quick ROI range from reducing energy demands by enabling more telecommuting and teleconferencing to consolidating data centers, he says.
"These, in our opinion, equal green IT," Kumar says.
With so many focused on reducing energy demand, IT organizations can easily sell initiatives that reduce power consumption -- a quick way to save money and become green, says Katharine Kaplan, product manager at Energy Star for Consumer Electronics and IT at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
"Power management is probably one of the easiest, low-cost ways to get big, big savings," Kaplan says, pointing out that using power management features on desktop PCs can save $50 per computer per year. Enabling power management tools on monitors can save another $12 to $90 annually per monitor.
Becky Blalock, senior vice president and CIO at Southern Co., an Atlanta-based energy company, says her organization is implementing power management technology to ensure that its 26,000 desktops are asleep at night and during other times of inactivity. Although the numbers aren't in yet, Blalock says she expects high savings throughout the organization.
Managing desktops is just the start, says Henry Wong, senior staff technologist in the eco-technology program office at Intel Corp. He points out that better asset management is another simple step that can cut energy demand and costs. Just examine your operations to identify and turn off any device that isn't used or needed.
Mark O'Gara, vice president of infrastructure management at Highmark Inc., a health insurance company in Pittsburgh, says he's examining the need for any device that draws power -- any fax machine, printer or copier -- and figuring how to reduce its energy demands by either using power management tools or getting rid of the device. He says he's working with the company's facilities department to get baseline readings so he'll be able to measure progress.
"You can start to see what energy we use, find opportunities to reduce power costs and find ways to reduce it through capital improvements," O'Gara says.
Another quick way to introduce green benefits that have financial paybacks is through refresh initiatives and procurement policies, says Michelle Erickson, initiative director of the sustainable IT program in global operations and technology at Citigroup Inc. in New York. For example, Citi is looking at implementing thin clients, which, because they have lower power needs, save money and reduce the company's carbon footprint.
Erickson also recommends setting procurement policies that specify that new equipment must be Energy Star-complaint, thereby ensuring that the company is getting more energy-efficient computers. And with new Energy Star standards rolling out in 2009, the policy will apply to servers too.
Similar strategies can be employed in the data center, Wong says. Look at the machines you have, and consolidate where you can to maximize the use of each server -- but make sure that you can still meet the needs of your business units.
"We did this at Intel and had a $3 million cost avoidance," Wong says. The dollar savings came from not having to build a new physical structure and pay for that new building's ongoing maintenance. As for the green benefits, there's less demand for power and new equipment.
"You can see another building that doesn't have to exist anymore. And it's the HVAC system, the people, the maintenance area -- it's not just IT. That's a really big to-do," Wong adds.
But even organizations that aren't ready for those kinds of projects can simply start by controlling the temperature, Wong says. Although it will be necessary to monitor the humidity when doing so, most companies can raise the temperature at least a few degrees and start lowering their air conditioning demands. And don't forget about using that natural air for cooling.
It might not be the biggest step, but it's a start.
It's not quite that simple, but it can be one step toward those goals, because companies that use natural air to cool their facilities are seeing big benefits on both the environmental and financial fronts. In fact, IT leaders, analysts and environmental advocates say there are plenty of opportunities for tech organizations to create more Earth-friendly operations that cut energy needs and slash a company's carbon footprint while saving money, too.
But many organizations still aren't capitalizing on such initiatives -- even the ones that are relatively easy and inexpensive to implement.
IT executives who responded to Computerworld 's annual Forecast survey seem to echo that reluctance. Nearly half (42%) said their IT departments have no plans to launch projects in the next 12 months to reduce energy consumption or carbon emissions, and nearly three quarters reported no plans to create committees to oversee energy-saving initiatives.
Yet experts say organizations that ignore green computing now are going to have to catch up if they want to stay competitive. "The green issue is not going to go away. There's too much at stake," says Rakesh Kumar, an analyst at Gartner Inc.
That's not to say IT leaders don't have their reasons for staying away from green computing. Kumar says some of them think it's a fad. Christopher Mines, an analyst at Forrester Research Inc., says others believe global warming is a crock and that there's no need to act on the issue, or they see green as merely increasing expenses.
Many others are nervous about reworking established systems and processes. "The last thing these people want to do is take a screwdriver to IT processes that work and start re-engineering them to make them more efficient," Mines says.
Early Adopters
Increasingly, however, IT leaders and other executives are putting aside such concerns and pushing for green IT initiatives.
When IDC surveyed 300 CEOs for its September 2008 "U.S. Green IT Survey," 44% of the respondents said that IT will play a very important role in their organizations' efforts to reduce their environmental impact. Compare that to the 2007 survey, in which only 14% of CEOs said they felt that way.
The 2008 survey also showed that energy costs were the most pressing reason for the adoption of green IT.
"We don't see many or indeed any companies that are hesitant to explore green IT projects," IDC analyst Vernon Turner wrote in an e-mail on this topic. "In fact, the scary thing is where to start, and it may be that reason why there is somewhat a feeling of lost souls. There has been a lot of marketing by the IT vendor community around green, and I think that CEOs and CIOs are 'green-washed' by it."
To be sure, developing enterprisewide green policies is a major undertaking. On the other hand, IT departments can implement some green IT initiatives without reworking entire policies, processes and procedures -- and without spending a lot of cash.
Moreover, they can sell management on these projects based not just on the initiatives' environmental merits but on their financial rewards as well.
"A lot of stuff is going to give you a short-term payback," Kumar says. He says that given today's economy, CIOs should focus on green initiatives that will have paybacks well within 18 months. Projects with such quick ROI range from reducing energy demands by enabling more telecommuting and teleconferencing to consolidating data centers, he says.
"These, in our opinion, equal green IT," Kumar says.
With so many focused on reducing energy demand, IT organizations can easily sell initiatives that reduce power consumption -- a quick way to save money and become green, says Katharine Kaplan, product manager at Energy Star for Consumer Electronics and IT at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
"Power management is probably one of the easiest, low-cost ways to get big, big savings," Kaplan says, pointing out that using power management features on desktop PCs can save $50 per computer per year. Enabling power management tools on monitors can save another $12 to $90 annually per monitor.
Becky Blalock, senior vice president and CIO at Southern Co., an Atlanta-based energy company, says her organization is implementing power management technology to ensure that its 26,000 desktops are asleep at night and during other times of inactivity. Although the numbers aren't in yet, Blalock says she expects high savings throughout the organization.
Managing desktops is just the start, says Henry Wong, senior staff technologist in the eco-technology program office at Intel Corp. He points out that better asset management is another simple step that can cut energy demand and costs. Just examine your operations to identify and turn off any device that isn't used or needed.
Mark O'Gara, vice president of infrastructure management at Highmark Inc., a health insurance company in Pittsburgh, says he's examining the need for any device that draws power -- any fax machine, printer or copier -- and figuring how to reduce its energy demands by either using power management tools or getting rid of the device. He says he's working with the company's facilities department to get baseline readings so he'll be able to measure progress.
"You can start to see what energy we use, find opportunities to reduce power costs and find ways to reduce it through capital improvements," O'Gara says.
Another quick way to introduce green benefits that have financial paybacks is through refresh initiatives and procurement policies, says Michelle Erickson, initiative director of the sustainable IT program in global operations and technology at Citigroup Inc. in New York. For example, Citi is looking at implementing thin clients, which, because they have lower power needs, save money and reduce the company's carbon footprint.
Erickson also recommends setting procurement policies that specify that new equipment must be Energy Star-complaint, thereby ensuring that the company is getting more energy-efficient computers. And with new Energy Star standards rolling out in 2009, the policy will apply to servers too.
Similar strategies can be employed in the data center, Wong says. Look at the machines you have, and consolidate where you can to maximize the use of each server -- but make sure that you can still meet the needs of your business units.
"We did this at Intel and had a $3 million cost avoidance," Wong says. The dollar savings came from not having to build a new physical structure and pay for that new building's ongoing maintenance. As for the green benefits, there's less demand for power and new equipment.
"You can see another building that doesn't have to exist anymore. And it's the HVAC system, the people, the maintenance area -- it's not just IT. That's a really big to-do," Wong adds.
But even organizations that aren't ready for those kinds of projects can simply start by controlling the temperature, Wong says. Although it will be necessary to monitor the humidity when doing so, most companies can raise the temperature at least a few degrees and start lowering their air conditioning demands. And don't forget about using that natural air for cooling.
It might not be the biggest step, but it's a start.
Memo to Vendors: Here's How to Build a Winner
Why do some people prefer Windows XP and Mac OS X over Windows Vista ? After all, Vista is pretty and sleek and much more advanced than XP, and, in many areas, Mac OS X. Why is there so much love for Xbox, but none for Windows Mobile ?
Why do BlackBerry users love their BlackBerrys, but the public is lukewarm about Palm devices?
Why is the Amazon Kindle, which is an unsophisticated, clunky, poorly designed gadget so popular with owners?
Why do people love plain, ugly Gmail?
The answer to these questions is a mystery to most of the companies that make PCs, gadgets, consumer electronics devices and to software makers. The industry spends billions on usability testing and user interface design. Unfortunately, that money is mostly wasted.
The problem is that there are too many technologists in technology. The technology is only half the equation. The other half is the human, that irrational, impulsive, impatient, power-hungry gratification machine.
When you ask someone what they really want, they won't tell you the truth because they're not aware of the truth.
Both users and product designers alike talk about user interface (UI) consistency, usability and simplicity, and system attributes like performance and stability. What's missing is that these attributes are means to an end. The real issue is always the user's physiological feeling of being in control. And control comes in many ways:
Consistency: Designers focus on UI "consistency," but why? Consistency gives predictability, which gives users a feeling that they know what will happen when they do something -- even for the first time. It's a feeling of mastery, of control.
Usability: One of the errors software and hardware designers make is to base their UI decisions on the assumption that the user is an idiot who needs to be protected from himself. Give this moron too much rope and he'll hang himself, the reasoning goes. But instead of taking the Microsoft route -- burying and hiding controls and features, which protects newbies from their own mistakes but frustrates the hell out of experienced users -- it's better to offer a bullet-proof "undo." Give the user control, let them make their own mistakes, then undo the damage if they mess something up.
Simplicity: Simplicity is complex. And there are many ways to achieve it. One way is to insist on top-to-bottom, inside-and-outside simplicity. Extreme examples include the original Palm Pilot organizer, Gmail and RSS feeds. And then there's the illusion of simplicity, which is the Microsoft route. In trying to be the operating system vendor for all people and all tasks, Microsoft Windows and Windows Mobile are extraordinarily complex pieces of software engineering. To "simplify," the company hides features, buries controls and groups features into categories to create the appearance of fewer options, without actually reducing options. (From all accounts, it appears that Windows 7 will offer more of the same.) Both extremes result in something you could call "simplicity." But one version thrills users by putting them in control. The other frustrates them by taking away control.
Performance: Everyone hates slow PCs. It's not the waiting. It's the fact that the PC has wrenched control from the user during the time that the hourglass is displayed. That three seconds of staring at the hourglass is three seconds when you feel utterly powerless. Fast computers are good because they keep the user in control.
Stability: Designers focus on system "stability," but it's not because they worry about time wasted, though that's how users tend to talk a lack of stability. Like the performance issue, instability is about the theft of system control from the user. People waste all kinds of time on all kinds of things, and usually don't mind doing it. What enrages people is when somebody else forces wasted time on you. Blue Screens of Death are more akin to running into unexpected traffic jams or having somebody take away the TV remote control. You're forced into putting your objectives on hold, and left feeling powerless.
One reason for the industry-wide pandemic of frustrating products is that the whole culture of usability testing doesn't emphasize user feelings of control. Microsoft does usability tests, for example, but its tests are flawed. Typically, it sits random people in front of a PC in a usability lab. Victims are directed to do various tasks, and asked what they're doing and thinking as they try to complete those tasks. All of this is monitored, and everything is recorded.Microsoft usability testing tends to focus on enabling users to "accomplish goals." Microsoft categorizes these goals according to their educated preconceptions about what people are trying to do based on their jobs or user categorization are you a student, middle manager, designer, for instance. So Microsoft focuses on results.
My view is that how the user feels during the process is more important than anything else.Here's the problem. In these scenarios, users are using somebody else's PC. They expect and assume that the software is in control. There is no psychological feeling of "ownership" over the equipment or the software or the work or anything. So the most important element -- the sense of control people feel when doing their own work on their own PCs in their own homes -- is missing entirely from the tests.
During usability tests, users are asked constantly about the software. And that's the wrong question. When real people are doing real work, they're focused on their own desires and objectives and are frustrated or not frustrated based on the degree to which they're given what they want.
My advice to Microsoft is to add an additional test: a "Who's In Control?" test. After performing a task, ask the user to rank their experience on a scale with "me in control" on one side, and "software in control" on the other. Try all test methods for completing various tasks, and choose the one ranked with the maximum "me in control" score. And they need the home version for ongoing testing in the "real world."
We've all experienced the full range of emotions while using gadgets, PCs, phones and software. At one end of the spectrum is a kind of thrilling joy, where something "just works." At the other end, there is a consuming rage. The amount of time your emotional state spends at one end of the spectrum rather than the other is the one and only thing that determines how much you "love" the product.
All the factors involved in using a PC -- consistency, usability, simplicity, stability, performance and even the successful completion of tasks -- all come down to control.Give me control, and I will love your product. It's as simple as that.
Why do BlackBerry users love their BlackBerrys, but the public is lukewarm about Palm devices?
Why is the Amazon Kindle, which is an unsophisticated, clunky, poorly designed gadget so popular with owners?
Why do people love plain, ugly Gmail?
The answer to these questions is a mystery to most of the companies that make PCs, gadgets, consumer electronics devices and to software makers. The industry spends billions on usability testing and user interface design. Unfortunately, that money is mostly wasted.
The problem is that there are too many technologists in technology. The technology is only half the equation. The other half is the human, that irrational, impulsive, impatient, power-hungry gratification machine.
When you ask someone what they really want, they won't tell you the truth because they're not aware of the truth.
Both users and product designers alike talk about user interface (UI) consistency, usability and simplicity, and system attributes like performance and stability. What's missing is that these attributes are means to an end. The real issue is always the user's physiological feeling of being in control. And control comes in many ways:
Consistency: Designers focus on UI "consistency," but why? Consistency gives predictability, which gives users a feeling that they know what will happen when they do something -- even for the first time. It's a feeling of mastery, of control.
Usability: One of the errors software and hardware designers make is to base their UI decisions on the assumption that the user is an idiot who needs to be protected from himself. Give this moron too much rope and he'll hang himself, the reasoning goes. But instead of taking the Microsoft route -- burying and hiding controls and features, which protects newbies from their own mistakes but frustrates the hell out of experienced users -- it's better to offer a bullet-proof "undo." Give the user control, let them make their own mistakes, then undo the damage if they mess something up.
Simplicity: Simplicity is complex. And there are many ways to achieve it. One way is to insist on top-to-bottom, inside-and-outside simplicity. Extreme examples include the original Palm Pilot organizer, Gmail and RSS feeds. And then there's the illusion of simplicity, which is the Microsoft route. In trying to be the operating system vendor for all people and all tasks, Microsoft Windows and Windows Mobile are extraordinarily complex pieces of software engineering. To "simplify," the company hides features, buries controls and groups features into categories to create the appearance of fewer options, without actually reducing options. (From all accounts, it appears that Windows 7 will offer more of the same.) Both extremes result in something you could call "simplicity." But one version thrills users by putting them in control. The other frustrates them by taking away control.
Performance: Everyone hates slow PCs. It's not the waiting. It's the fact that the PC has wrenched control from the user during the time that the hourglass is displayed. That three seconds of staring at the hourglass is three seconds when you feel utterly powerless. Fast computers are good because they keep the user in control.
Stability: Designers focus on system "stability," but it's not because they worry about time wasted, though that's how users tend to talk a lack of stability. Like the performance issue, instability is about the theft of system control from the user. People waste all kinds of time on all kinds of things, and usually don't mind doing it. What enrages people is when somebody else forces wasted time on you. Blue Screens of Death are more akin to running into unexpected traffic jams or having somebody take away the TV remote control. You're forced into putting your objectives on hold, and left feeling powerless.
One reason for the industry-wide pandemic of frustrating products is that the whole culture of usability testing doesn't emphasize user feelings of control. Microsoft does usability tests, for example, but its tests are flawed. Typically, it sits random people in front of a PC in a usability lab. Victims are directed to do various tasks, and asked what they're doing and thinking as they try to complete those tasks. All of this is monitored, and everything is recorded.Microsoft usability testing tends to focus on enabling users to "accomplish goals." Microsoft categorizes these goals according to their educated preconceptions about what people are trying to do based on their jobs or user categorization are you a student, middle manager, designer, for instance. So Microsoft focuses on results.
My view is that how the user feels during the process is more important than anything else.Here's the problem. In these scenarios, users are using somebody else's PC. They expect and assume that the software is in control. There is no psychological feeling of "ownership" over the equipment or the software or the work or anything. So the most important element -- the sense of control people feel when doing their own work on their own PCs in their own homes -- is missing entirely from the tests.
During usability tests, users are asked constantly about the software. And that's the wrong question. When real people are doing real work, they're focused on their own desires and objectives and are frustrated or not frustrated based on the degree to which they're given what they want.
My advice to Microsoft is to add an additional test: a "Who's In Control?" test. After performing a task, ask the user to rank their experience on a scale with "me in control" on one side, and "software in control" on the other. Try all test methods for completing various tasks, and choose the one ranked with the maximum "me in control" score. And they need the home version for ongoing testing in the "real world."
We've all experienced the full range of emotions while using gadgets, PCs, phones and software. At one end of the spectrum is a kind of thrilling joy, where something "just works." At the other end, there is a consuming rage. The amount of time your emotional state spends at one end of the spectrum rather than the other is the one and only thing that determines how much you "love" the product.
All the factors involved in using a PC -- consistency, usability, simplicity, stability, performance and even the successful completion of tasks -- all come down to control.Give me control, and I will love your product. It's as simple as that.
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