Breaking up iTunes

Inspired when listening to Ctrl-Walt-Delete podcast titled "Walt and Nilay worry about Apple", I decided to speculate on a future without iTunes, and as a result, OS X. Before I dive into this, I must disclose that, as of October 2014, I own an iPhone 6 Plus, an iPad 3, a retina Macbook Pro, an iPod Touch 4, and a 2006 Macbook Pro. This transition into the iTunes ecosystem took place over 10 years; initially, I bought the Macbook Pro in 2006 to enter a world I had been removed from since I was a child (Macintosh LC II and OS 7). I loved the Unix core of OS X, and the transition to Intel finally won me back, as OS X was more powerful and open than Windows.

I had also been interested in the iPod revolution, but the device that truly struck my eye was the iPhone. Aside from being exclusive to AT&T for many years, the other factor that had kept me away from the iPhone was the closed platform of iOS and how tightly coupled it was to iTunes. Coming from Handspring and the Palm Treo, I was not interested in becoming dependent on another "Palm Desktop". When I did finally purchase my first iOS device, the iPod Touch 4, my goal was to keep iTunes out of my music as much as possible. I added all of my music using a read-only mount and opted to manually manage the content in my library. This does add an extra step when importing new music to the iPod, but I was able to keep things independent and use the iPod for what it does best, play music and run apps. When I brought the iPad into the mix a year later, I replicated my setup with the iPod, using iPhoto to synchronize events to the device. I would continue to locally backup both the iPod and iPad, but I did begin to use iCloud when it became available on the iPad. When I finally went to the iPhone, I was able to replicate my setup with my iPad, again relying on iTunes to backup the device. However, the app syncing in iTunes sometimes replicates apps that I do not want on either my iPad, iPhone, or iPod, and I was no longer using iTunes or iPhoto to synchronize content to my devices (with the rare exception of the iPod, which remains in my car and syncs maybe once a year).

Therefore, iTunes has become a device backup management platform similar to Palm Desktop, despite my efforts to avoid this. Yes, I still use iCloud to backup my iPad and iPhone, but I also like having a local backup when a full restore is needed (which has happened to me on the iPad a couple of times). This function should be integrated in OS X; now that OS X is responsible for iCloud syncing, it should also be responsible for my iOS devices when I attach and sync them to my computer. As pointed out by Nilay and Walt in the podcast, the role of iTunes should return to being solely a content store, perhaps even being demoted to a backend service that could be integrated into future apps for the desktop such as Apple Music and Apple TV. Ultimately, I should be able to go to OS X Settings -> Device Management, and access my backups and any other syncing settings from there. At this point, it is up to Apple to finally make this a reality in the next version of OS X and break up iTunes so that we can all finally break up with iTunes.

The Alphabet of Google

Google no longer goes under the mantra "Don't be Evil". The new slogan is "Do the Right Thing" and its new parent, Alphabet, incorporates Google, Nest, Fiber, Ventures, Calico and Capital into a modern corporate structure that allows for many sub-corporations or LLCs under one umbrella, limiting the risk of a sub-corporation causing the entire company to fail.

To decode the Alphabet of the future, I'll take the time to go through a fun childhood exercise, fill in the Alphabet!

Android (acquired)
Blogger (acquired)
Chrome
Drive
Earth (KeyHole)
Fiber
Gmail
Hangouts (SIPPhone)
Inbox
Junior
Keep
Location
Motorola (acquired)
Nest (acquired)
OnHub
Picasa (acquired)
Q (Nexus Q)
Red (YouTube Red)
Street View
Translate
Underwater
Voice (GrandCentral)
Wallet
X Labs
YouTube (acquired)
Zoo

One area not covered above is Google Now. I would argue that Google Now is Alphabet; that is, when Google improves its natural language user interface ("OK Google" assistant), it will be able to tie all components of Alphabet into one, becoming the Babelfish of technology and controlling everything from your thermostat to your television, your phone and your email, and eventually your car. So let's embrace the Alphabet (as many of us have already embraced Google) as this is the next wave of technology modernizing our lives.

Galaxy Note 2: Smooth as Butter

Rapid development in the smartphone space can be summed up with a single observation. It took the AMD Athlon 6 years to move from single to dual cores, followed 2 years later with quad cores; in comparison, ARM SOCs moved from single to dual to quad cores in 2 years time.

The phone comfortably sitting in my pocket packs a quad-core SOC clocked at 1.6GHz with 2GB of RAM. This is mind-boggling to me, particularly considering that a budget AMD laptop (sub-$300), a Lenovo powered by the E1-1200 and also with 2GB of RAM, runs at the same clock frequency. Both the AMD Bobcat and Cortex-A9 MPCore architectures are dual-issue, out-of-order processors; the AMD is 64-bit and is a bit more complex with a 16-stage pipeline (vs. 9-stage with the A9), and the AMD incorporates a much more powerful GPU (HD 7310 vs. ARM's Mali-400MP). It would be interesting to compare the computing and graphics performance of the two processors; Windows RT and Ubuntu OS's phone push may make this a reality (let's go, Anandtech!).

Having sported both the HTC Evo 3D and HP Pre 3 during the past two years, I was really looking forward to a powerful smartphone that incorporates the app ecosystem of Android with a smooth and well designed device, and the Galaxy Note 2 fits that bill brilliantly. Android 4.1 (Jellybean) was the first release that Matias Duarte, the head UI designer of WebOS, was able to influence from top to bottom. Although on the surface Jellybean is very much Ice Cream Sandwich with font and icon tweaks, under the hood it is a sea change; Jellybean finally brings Android to a level playing field with Apple's iOS. The fit and polish of the device, from the slightly rounded edges to the home button and hidden back and menu keys, makes it feel great all around. Samsung also includes a Wacom-based digitized stylus, which brings back precise note taking and drawing on a capactive screen in a seamless way. TouchWiz seems much faster and less intrusive than HTC Sense; the shortcuts to control device features (including brightness) can be found in the dashboard, and all controls are very responsive. It does not enable support landscape viewing of the home screen, but Ultimate Rotation Control brings a true auto rotate to the home and lock screens with no perceivable overhead and no interaction after initial setup.

This write-up would not be complete without a mention of Palm Touchstone support. The WebOS community, upon discovering the simplicity of this modification, has taken the coils and magnets from old Pre back covers and attached them to modern smartphones, including the Galaxy S3 and Galaxy Nexus. I did not feel inspired to mod the Evo 3D to support the Touchstone, but the Galaxy Note 2 in landscape on a dock, of which I have several, seemed like a perfect fit. Due to owning the U.S. Cellular version of this phone, I did not have the exposed contacts that I needed to make the modification without voiding my warranty, but I did attach the magnetic back to the cover.

From TechRamble.net

In the car and on my nightstand, I place the Note 2 on the dock in landscape mode (after repositioning and centering the magnets), using CarHome Ultra and Inglorious Apps Dock, respectively, in each configuration. I've already ordered a pack of Samsung TecTiles that I plan to place in each environment to preload these apps and appropriate settings.

From TechRamble.net

LTE on U.S. Cellular has been outstanding in Wisconsin. I've been able to stream podcasts without interruptions while driving between Madison, Port Washington, and Milwaukee, with top speeds of 20 mbits/sec and average close to 10. The unlimited LTE data option, currently available through March 31, is well worth the expense; in fact, I am contemplating adding the $20 a month hotspot option in place of the Verizon LTE prepaid plan on the iPad. The Google Voice widget makes it very easy to respond to text messages, and SynerGV is useful for placing calls during the day to avoid using minutes. With the reliable data connection, I have not found a need to use text messaging directly from the phone.

Less than two years ago, I switched from the Palm Pre to the HTC Evo 3D on Sprint. I had intended on writing about my experience, but having to use Gingerbread for far too long (it took over a year for Sprint and HTC to release Ice Cream Sandwich), my experience with Sense and sub-par performance (in spite of the dual-core Qualcomm Adreno 220) has kept me from providing an honest review. Things improved once Sprint replaced my faulty screen digitizer, but the slow network and lack of WiMax peaked my tolerance, prompting me to break my contract 5 months early. The Evo 3D will continue to be useful as a test device, especially with 3D HDMI support, but I may have to switch to CyanogenMod in the future to try a stock build of Jellybean once it is stable for this model.

I can honestly say that I am comfortable relying on the Note 2 as my daily driver. The Palm Pre 3 will be useful when I travel abroad, but I no longer find the need to use it alongside Android; the HP TouchPad is sufficient for my WebOS and Linux needs. Google Now seems useful, and I hope U.S. Cellular and Samsung will keep up with updates so that I can try out DayDream, Android's equivalent to WebOS Exhibition, introduced in v4.2. For those interested in Samsung TecTile (NFC) compatibility with Touchstone, stay tuned (and follow techramble on Twitter).

Update 1: Forgot to mention, I wish there were a non-root way to enable to soft on-screen back and menu keys, as the hardware capacitive touch keys do not function with the stylus. I wonder if Samsung will rectify this in an update, at least while using the stylus.

RIM Should Make an Android Phone with Amazon

The clock is ticking for RIM, and although they still have money in the bank, the postponed release of Blackberry OS 10 into 2013 does not bode well for the platform. The Blackberry Playbook provides a development platform for applications that could run on Blackberry v10 phones, but with Microsoft contending in the phone and tablet market with Windows 8, it will be difficult for developers to justify work on another proprietary platform.

The Android App Player that runs on the Blackberry Playbook OS 2 is a good option for users looking to RIM for a secure enterprise platform but wanting access to a more diverse application catalog that Android provides. The jailed approach also ensures that the Dalvik engine, the foundation of Android, remains a truly isolated process from core functions of the Blackberry OS, which is beneficial from both security and reliability standpoints.

Being the only remaining player relying on a closed source RTOS at the core of RIM's phones, a significant effort is required to develop and support the Blackberry OS. Bringing in the QNX core and team is not sufficient to meet the demands of the phone market for rapid iteration of high-end hardware. The case can be made to continue developing QNX for Blackberry phones, but user-level applications do not need to be so closely tied to the Blackberry OS.

Given that the QNX team has demonstrated the ability for the Blackberry Playbook OS to run Android's Dalvik engine, what prevents RIM from running Android on their phones? With dual-core being the defacto minimum specs for a modern smartphone, RIM can run both the Blackberry and Android OS's with minimal to no impact to performance. This would allow RIM to focus on what they do best, which is providing a secure and reliable platform for users, while also providing access to the Android ecosystem.

In order to deliver the experience necessary to compete with core Android phones, RIM will also have to create a reverse skin for Android. There is no need for Android to run in a separate, single app container; instead, each app should be displayed as native as possible. This would accomplish one major feat that all other Android OEMs cannot: fork and present running Android apps as separate windows, providing a user-friendly approach to Android multitasking without taking away from the Android experience. The Dalvik engine can still suspend applications when the system is running low on RAM or an app hasn't been accessed in some time, but the user can have more control over how an app runs. Additionally, the core primarily running Android apps can be put to sleep when the device is not in use, and the Blackberry core can maintain system state and provide the secure and reliable phone and data services that users expect, without compromising battery life.

Where Amazon comes in has much to do with their ecosystem, comprising of vast content and an Android application store that can provide compatible apps to Blackberry devices. Jeff Bezos has famously remarked that "he loved his BlackBerry and the ease with which he could find e-mails and respond to people"; even the Kindle Fire is based on the BlackBerry Playbook hardware (likely due to cost and ease of design re-use).

The advantage that both RIM and Palm had with physical keyboards was their ability to develop a UI around the keyboard, not the other way around. Having features such as Just Type in WebOS provides the user the option to type a search query or email response without having to wait for the UI to respond. A Google or Apple search on touchscreen devices require time for a tap on a button or search bar and a soft keyboard to appear before the query can be entered, and a physical keyboard is far more efficient for this action.

By having RIM focus on developing the hardware and core software, Amazon can focus on delivering the content on Android phones through a major phone vendor, and this RIM + Amazon partnership can truly produce a real alternative to Apple, Google, and Microsoft. This could be the phone to replace BlackBerry as we know it today while continuing to provide many of the features many of us long for in a phone. What better way to keep pace with Android development than to fully integrate the engine in a RIM device.

Koss Striva Pro on WebOS Linux

Bluetooth is ubiquitous and works well with WebOS, so why would I want to stream using WiFi headphones? That is the question I might expect a common reader to have, and my response is simple: WiFi is everywhere. The Internet is the modern delivery mechanism for music; this has been established with iTunes, Amazon, Pandora, and Spotify at the forefront. If music is arriving from the Internet, why not connect directly to the source using your headphones?

Koss recently launched a WiFi music platform called Striva, the portal of which is found at myKoss.com. The website allows for the definition of music channels and the configuration of hardware. The Striva Pro, Koss's first WiFi headphone to hit the market, can connect to any predefined WiFi APs (such as a home network, a mobile hotspot, and a work network), and it will also connect to any truly open WiFi AP (like those sometimes found at your local coffee shop). When connected to a WiFi AP, the music playing on the headphones is displayed and can be controlled via myKoss. A custom channel and stream can also be added as long as it is an Icecast or Shoutcast stream (pls and IP:PORT both accepted). This is how I am able to listen to my music at home, since I am using mpd (Music Player Daemon) and icecast2 for streaming.

Since WebOS is based on Linux, only a few steps are required to properly configure your HP TouchPad or Palm Pre to stream music, audiobooks, and podcasts directly without using a Koss CAP (Content Access Point). I decided to use a chrooted Ubuntu filesystem for ease of setup and access to a UI for music control. I have a 2GB img file in /media/internal that I mount to /media/ext3fs, but for the basic set of instructions refer to this WebOS-Internals page.

Once you have XTerm and the UbuntuChroot installed and configured, you can use Xecutah to launch a terminal in both workspaces. Note: the following Linux configuration may also work on Android or jailbroken iOS with minor tweaks.

WebOS IP Configuration
Before we can setup mpd and icecast2 to play and stream music, respectively, it is advantageous to have a dynamic DNS, and port forwarding must be setup for the music to flow via WiFi. I am using a free account from Dynamic DNS and the utility ez-ipupdate, available via Preware/Optware.

In order to update the dynamic DNS with the WiFi IP, the interface parameter found in /opt/etc/ez-ipupdate.conf must be set to 'eth0'. The script '09update-ddns' should be placed in /etc/network/if-up.d/ to ensure that it is executed when a new WiFi connection is established. Note: I have seen this work on WebOS 3.x, but I have to manually execute the script to update on 2.x.

Finally, IP port forwarding must be enabled for the icecast2 (default: 8000) and mpd (default: 6600) ports. I created the following script in /etc/init.d/mpd_server.sh to configure iptables:

#!/bin/sh
/usr/sbin/iptables -I INPUT -p tcp --dport 8000 -j ACCEPT
/usr/sbin/iptables -I INPUT -p tcp --sport 6600 -j ACCEPT

MPD/Icecast Configuration
Within the Ubuntu chroot, as user 'root', execute the following commands:

'apt get mpd'
'apt get icecast2'
'apt get lame'

To configure mpd to output to icecast2 by default, open /etc/mpd.conf comment out the default 'audio_output' and uncomment the default "shout output". I set my 'mount' to '/mpd.mp3', commented out 'bitrate' and added a line for 'quality' set to '5.0'. The 'password', 'name', and 'description' can also be set to preference. Also, you will need to comment out 'bind_to_address' to allow control from an external network.

To configure icecast2, open /etc/icecast2/icecast.xml and modify the passwords to match that set in mpd.conf.

Add Music and Start Streaming
The default music location is /var/lib/mpd. In order to gain access to your mp3s, the chroot bind needs to be defined for /media/internal.

Start by creating the mount point in the ext3 partition.

'mkdir -p /media/ext3fs/ubuntu-natty-chroot/internal'

Modify /media/cryptofs/apps/usr/palm/applications/org.webosinternals.ubuntu-natty-chroot/bin/chroot-wrapper.sh and add the following:

'mount --bind /media/internal ${CHROOT}/internal'
'umount ${CHROOT}/internal'

This will automatically bind the /media/internal partition to /internal within the Ubuntu chroot. Add the music directories you would like to index as a soft link within /var/lib/mpd/music/:

'ln -s /internal/HPMusic /var/lib/mpd/music/HPMusic'

Within the Ubuntu chroot terminal, start the icecast2 process followed by the mpd process.

'/etc/init.d/icecast2 start'
'/etc/init.d/mpd start'

To update the Dynamic DNS IP and enable port forwarding, execute the following from within XTerm:

'/etc/init.d/mpd_server.sh'
'/etc/network/if-up.d/09update-ddns'

Finally, to setup and control music through mpd, install one or both of the following clients within the Ubuntu chroot:

'apt-get install mpc'
'apt-get install sonata'

Music Control
To update the music database, execute the following command within the Ubuntu chroot:

'mpc update'

To add your entire music collection to the current playlist:

'mpc listall | mpc add'

And finally, to start playing music:

'mpc play'

Custom Stream
Add a custom stream using the dynamic DNS and port number to your myKoss account.

e.g. 'http://icecast.dyndns.org:8000/mpd.mp3'

Select this stream, ensure that the chroot card is focused on WebOS, and power-up the Koss Striva Pro. If everything is configured properly, the headphones will start streaming from your TouchPad or Pre.

Pulse Audio
I was not able to make use of the icecast plugin for pulse audio on the TouchPad. If anyone is able to make any progress on this, please feel free to comment or message me and I will add the details in a future post.

Conclusion
The Koss Striva WiFi platform enables high quality audio streaming directly from your home server and mobile device. While Bluetooth is quick and easy to setup, it does not provide a high quality audio streaming experience (A2DP is equivalent to a 96kbps stream, while the Lame encoder is capable of CD quality at VBR or 320kbps settings). This demonstrates that it is possible for a Linux configuration to stream directly to the headphones. While apps on the PC and mobile devices will provide this capability to the common user with no command-line configuration, this demonstrates how powerful of a platform Striva is. The revolution is truly in the air!

iPad 3 Conspiracy Theory Glenn Beck Style

A[mazon][dobe]'s Future Application Platform: WebOS, Codename Enyo

We have now reached the point of no return: after returning to its parent company 3com/HP, the original Palm hardware group has been assimilated and Palm is no more. They were given one final run, producing the TouchPad in under 1 year and providing the Pre line with hardware it deserved with the Veer and Pre^3; however, it was too little, too late. Ultimately, what HP did was keep Palm alive long enough to finally produce the tablet the WebOS faithful have been waiting for; had this tablet been introduced at CES along with the Pre^3 and Touch-to-Share in 2009 (or subsequently followed the "Pre"release, Pixi, and Apple's iPad), the original buzz generated from CES 2009 may have carried on and made WebOS a definitive third in the mobile OS race. Instead, Palm failed to attract the attention (and sales) needed to provide WebOS with enough traction to compete on its own, and by the time the funding was available to produce arguably the first great hardware to run WebOS (circa 2011), iOS and Android have finally picked up on many of the features that makes WebOS great: more flexible and non-intrusive notifications, gestures, better multitasking support, synergy, and a cloud-based profile and backup.

The great software that has kept Palm alive is now all that remains. Back in April of 2010 I authored a post speculating on hardware companies that could acquire Palm and benefit from and produce great hardware for WebOS (HP was missing from my list ;-). Now, the question that remains is, who will truly benefit from WebOS as a software (and application) platform? Out of the many rumoured companies interested at this point, I will pick 4.

Amazon.com - One of the four modern computing titans, and the only without an OS to call its own. Amazon was the first to recognize that as a sales-centric company, as more and more content goes digital, it would need a platform of its own to deliver this content. The Kindle was the first such platform, which began with ebooks (currently surpassing paperback sales) and continues with apps, music, and video on the Fire.



The Kindle Fire runs a heavily customized Android 2.3 skin, but the Amazon App Store has been around for over 6 months and provides access to over 8500 apps. By contrast, the HP TouchPad has over 5500 apps, many of which came from the Pre, which has been around for over 2 years. For the current launch (and the 2011 holiday market), a $200 7" Android-based tablet will fare well. However, relying on the Android platform and essentially forking 2.3 may not be a good longterm strategy, especially considering the app fragmentation that will result once 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) is widely deployed.

Amazon has already shown a desire to have a strong presence in the cloud computing market, launching EC2 in 2006 well before Google's App Engine was introduced in 2008. The Silk browser on the Fire is another example of Amazon's push onto using the Web as an application engine. If Amazon were to acquire WebOS from HP, the next iteration of WebOS could be the platform for applications running and data stored in the cloud. Google's Chrome OS has already taken that next step, replicating WebOS by providing a web-based app platform and using the user login to sync apps and bookmarks, making the hardware a dummy terminal for the platform.

Amazon has also proven that the digital content you purchase is intended to be OS and device independent; Kindle books are available on iOS, WebOS, Android, and in any browser. The web applications already developed for WebOS are not restricted to a specific architecture (e.g. ARM or x86); theoretically, any non-PDK application (and ported PDK application) can also run within a browser. If Amazon were to purchase WebOS, not only would it gain a Linux-based UI that it could expand for a future Kindle Fire (and other portable media consumption devices), but also an App Catalog and WebOS profile that could be made accessible on any PC and mobile device. Imagine browsing the Amazon store through the lens of an application like the App Catalog on the TouchPad; Pivot is a great sales tool that can be utilized by Amazon.com to further sales similar to a weekly flyer, and each item can be previewed (video, photos, and reviews), saved to the cart or wish list, and purchased from a mobile device with ease.



Adobe - Flash is DOA on mobile devices, Steve Jobs decries, and Adobe's Web stronghold (acquired from Macromedia in 2005) begins its demise. Steve Jobs took Flash to the grave, leaving us with HTML5, an open standard to multimedia on the web. Originally pushed by WebKit (which powers Android/Chrome, Safari, and WebOS), Adobe acknowledges that future applications will be based on HTML5, with native applications for mobile devices (and Adobe Air on the desktop) filling in the gaps. With Flash dead, Adobe needs to resurrect itself in a significant way, and what better way than with WebOS. Adobe can quickly take WebOS applications to the desktop and mobile thanks to Enyo, further develop Ares and support developers and the multi-platform SDK, and advance the PDK to allow for native development on more platforms.



Adobe would also gain users and the WebOS profile, which can be combined with the Adobe login to support the syncing of epubs and build in support to borrow books from libraries directly from a tablet.

Intel - With Nokia dropping active development of Meego and the ARM-dominated mobile device market threatening the x86 business model, Intel may be looking for a new boost to its mobile presence. Intel already has the expertise gained from developing Meego for x86; combined with the UI and application framework from WebOS, it has the potential to finally combine performance and features to its mobile offerings to compete with Android and iOS on ARM. Aside from making WebOS available to all PC OEMs as a light alternative to loading up Windows, Intel has the potential to form partnerships with HP, Samsung, LG, and Lenevo to further push WebOS on x86-based tablets.

Qualcomm - The big launch partner for the 2011 HP WebOS devices, WebOS is already running on Qualcomm CPUs and can be further developed and pushed to mobile OEMs (HTC, Samsung, LG) to expand the adoption of its ARM chips (and provide patent licensing to protect new entrants). Ultimately this would be a competitive move to prevent Intel from gaining from WebOS on x86 and further the dominance of ARM.

Full disclosure: my preference is Amazon for the future parent of WebOS; I just see a lot more potential than with the other 3 options. Opera would be a great alternative to Amazon, but it doesn't have the resources to be able to go far with WebOS. Adobe is the most practical home for WebOS, as the development resources have already started focusing on getting applications to work on any PC or mobile device, and Adobe could use an HTML5-based web platform. Intel and Qualcomm may result in more hardware running WebOS, but it is a larger risk and will likely take a significant amount of resources to make WebOS a strong alternative to iOS, Android, and Windows. At this point, the only potential for HP to reinvest in WebOS is as a non-exclusive OEM; the actions taken by the company in the past few months have significantly reduced the value for HP-owned WebOS.

This is My Next's Joshua Topolsky Called the HP TouchPad Firesale

I was just going to post this as an update to my previous post, but this is too good to bury. In the process of catching up on tech podcasts on my drive back home this evening, I started listening to the "this is my next podcast" from 8/12/2011 and realized that Joshua Topolsky called the $99 TouchPad a week before it happened. Now this could imply that HP took a cue from This is my Next to firesale the TouchPad in order to get mass adoption of WebOS and perhaps poise the platform to be #2 on tablets...once again, a wild idea, but start listening at around 18 minutes into the podcast and you'll likely drop your jaw on this.

Here's a snippet (20 minutes in): "So like if they priced it at $100 and sold 10 million of them they would now be the number two tablet. I mean I'm saying like, the price doesn't define what it is. I mean certainly you have to keep it at a certain price, but if they had managed to sell 5 million tablets they would be at a much better position than they are now. People buy $99 tablet; they think they're gonna be cool. What HP should have done is just come out with a $99 TouchPad and completely ruined the industry, completely thrown everybody off. They could've taken a hit, like a few billion." And Nilay Patel's response..."That's such, like, a joker move, like lighting a pile of money on fire to prove that you don't need it." And then Josh follows up with "right, to put them in people's hands, so you would've locked them into the TouchPad. Developers have an audience, and they release a new TouchPad that like $199 that's thinner....I think that would've wrecked the program...for Apple, right? We'll never know now, will we?" Brilliant...for more on the future of WebOS from Josh Topolsky, check out his most recent op-ed at Washington Post. You never know, maybe WebOS will become Amazon's tablet OS, running on Samsung hardware.

WebOS: The Platform That Still Can

It was only two months ago when I placed my pre-order for the HP TouchPad. A part of me wanted to wait until I had a chance to demo the TouchPad in a brick-and-mortar, but the opportunity to have the TouchPad in my hands before my trip to Minneapolis the weekend of the 4th was too much for me to resist. Today I find myself $450 richer, as HP's instructions to credit early buyers finally made its way to Amazon.com. Note that I had the option to return the TouchPad and receive a full refund days before, but I waited patiently and the credit came through. It has simultaneously been a very confusing 4 days since HP's announcement to stop producing WebOS hardware. At first came denial; disbelief that HP would spend $1.2 billion dollars on Palm just one year ago, throw another half to one billion on running the business and designing a product as impressive as the TouchPad in less than one year while a merger was underway and the CEO was replaced. Then came anger; after having lived with a Sprint Pre for over two years, I had become hopeful that the Pre 3 would arrive to take its place, and now suddenly the Pre 3 is no where to be found and I am left with a less-than-optimal Franken Pre Plus. This $450 I find myself with was invested in future of WebOS; I would gladly bargain this cash for a Sprint Pre 3 and updates to the TouchPad and Pre for the next two years. Alas, I am not left with this option, leaving me to grudgingly accept a Franken Pre 2 at some point in the future once I feel compelled to buy one on ebay.



I would love to dedicate this blog posting to how much I love WebOS 3.0 running on the TouchPad. In fact, the promised OTA update that arrived July 31 greatly improved reliability with loading flash content like Hulu, Amazon Video, and Comedy Central, making this device the only computer I need when I travel. As I sit here blogging on the TouchPad, Last.fm is playing my mix radio station in the background (you have no idea how long I've waited for Last.fm on WebOS), and the "Kübler-Ross model" Wikipedia page is in the same stack as this blogger.com window.



At first glance, HP's announcement to exit the WebOS hardware business and possibly spin or sell off the entire Personal Systems division seemed like an incredibly crippling move. HP's shares declined over 30% the day after this announcement was made, losing more value than the amount required to purchase of Autonomy Corp, announced prior to the earnings report. It certainly was a PR nightmare for HP, one that introduced grave uncertainties to those employed by the Personal Systems Group and the former Palm group as well as the users and developers of WebOS. As someone who has personally experienced unknowns like this at a former employer, I understand how it feels to find out about a major development via a press release rather than having been informed internally prior to a public announcement; it is incredibly depressing. Especially given all the hard work the team has demonstrated this past year, it is disappointing that less than 2 months after the TouchPad was launched, and mid-way through another hardware development cycle, Palm was stopped in its tracks once again. Perhaps it was the ghost of the Palm Folio that stopped everything, or maybe it was the limited resources and shifts in focus away from phones and towards the TouchPad. It certainly didn't help that the two year anniversary of the launch of the original Palm Pre for Sprint was followed by no new WebOS phone for said users; although some of us continued to have patience and bought TouchPads at full retail price to help bide the time, ultimately the base that made up the WebOS movement in 2009 did not return in 2011.

The HP TouchPad was a great tablet and WebOS 3.0 was gaining traction in mindshare, but consumers were afraid to make the investment; iOS and Android were a safer bet, even though the platforms were not nearly as well developed as WebOS 3.0. In fact, I would have to say the HP TouchPad was the best WebOS launch HP and Palm could have executed. The device and software was well-received despite the hardware being compared to the first iPad and the software waiting for its OTA (in development for several months) to patch outstanding bugs. The advertisements for the Veer and TouchPad were actually quite good, and once the demos finally arrived at the multitude of retailers that HP reached out to for the launch, the TouchPad was front and center and ready to be touched by millions of consumers. The fan support, however, was lost; many of the sales employees had already moved on either to Android or iOS and it was safer to sell what they knew rather than what could be (and what they had likely found in the past to be insufficient).

Finally, Palm has been working very hard to court developers from the very first launch of WebOS, but they truly redoubled their efforts since the Think Beyond event in February, making the SDK for WebOS 3.0 available very early, making the Pre 2 affordable for developers to purchase and test with, and providing access to the Veer and TouchPad in many developer events throughout the nation months prior to launch. From my perspective, quality applications available for the TouchPad at launch easily surpassed HoneyComb at launch (and perhaps even to date), and were as significant (if not more) than the original application partners of the Sprint Pre. Epicurious, Kindle, Time magazine, and HD versions of Angry Birds were waiting for me when I first logged into my Palm Profile, along with all the applications I had downloaded (free and purchased) on my Pre. Only a couple weeks later and we started seeing impressive WebOS-native applications like Glimpse, Mosaic, and Video Flood HD. Additionally, Skype was built-in with video support and ready for use at launch, and WebOS 3.0 was even able to connect to my Pre (running meta 2.0) and place calls. The only thing that would have made this launch perfect would have been the availability of the Pre 3 on Sprint, Verizon, and AT&T on the same day...but we will never know what that would have been like.



Then came the firesale...TouchPad dropped from $499 to $399 less than two weeks ago (with a special $299 price at Staples) and finally down to the clearance prices of $99.99 for the 16GB and $149.99 for the 32GB starting Saturday morning. The tablets started flying off shelves and taking down customer service lines and major retailer websites, and this continues to this minute. Despite no guarantees for updates to the tablet after the first year warranty is up, and irregardless of platform (iOS and Android), the tablet consumer found this too good of a deal to pass up. The hardware is certainly up to par (1.2GHz, overclockable to 1.5GHz, with 1GB of RAM and good battery life), and WebOS, despite not having the iOS and Android apps and devices behind it, is certainly able to hold its own, and the consumer recognizes that. The risk isn't so high at $99 or $150, and suddenly HPalm was finally able to accomplish what they've been aiming for since WebOS was first introduced to the public; adoption near the scale of an Apple device.



"The distance between insanity and genius is measured only by success." Originally a Bruce Feirstein quote, it was also done well by our good friend Jonathan Pryce in the James Bond movie Tomorrow Never Dies. Léo Apotheker, the current CEO of HP with a name that sounds like a Bond villain, surprisingly tends to fall in line well with this quote, and only time will tell how successful this move was. One interesting factoid is that Mr. Apotheker won the French Légion honour in 2007 "in recognition of his business leadership and contribution to the French economy". By taking a huge loss and discounting the HP TouchPad below cost, HP has strangely invested in WebOS's future in a way that 3+ years of development and 2+ years of hardware has not. As unfortunate as this move will be for many outstanding engineers working at HPalm, Mr. Apotheker has taken potentially hundreds of millions of dollars to invest in WebOS's future, reminiscent of a socialist redistributing the wealth with the net result of a greater populace capable of discretionary spending to stimulate the economy. In other words, WebOS just gained over a million users and greater interest in the platform than all of the efforts taken previously by engineers and marketing to capture the attention of the tech addicted masses. It is sad to see this money taken away from engineering (seeing that Palm was likely a $500 million dollar business prior to being acquired), but this may have been the smartest way to invest this money on WebOS. Developer sales have increased 4-fold, and PC Mag headlined "The 10 Best Things to Do With Your New $99 HP TouchPad", a feature that's typically focused on more WebOS specific blogs like precentral and webosroundup.

Ultimately, the most interesting result of this madness seems to have solved the dilemma of which comes first, the users or the developers. A platform needs apps to garner user attention, and WebOS, launched on lackluster hardware and deployed in a limited fashion for the past two years, lost user interest, which lost developer interest, and continued to spiral downwards until HP decided it was time to make it rain tablets. And now WebOS has earned the reawakening it was seeking on the TouchPad...it's up to HP now to keep the momentum going once again.

Computing Titans of Today (Part 2)

Given the four modern technology driving forces outlined in Part 1, I will take this opportunity to study the approaches taken by each of the four titans to increase revenue and maintain high profit margins. Whenever one of these companies succeeds in garnering interest in a technology evolution, nearly every competitor and supplier stands to benefit.

Apple - A company with a well-recognized brand that began the personal computing revolution and continues to remain relevant over 30 years after it was founded. System engineering is Apple's specialty; although they are not necessarily the first to market or the original creators of the technology that they use, the implementation genius of Steve Wozniak and the testing rigor of Steve Jobs lives on in the very essence of the company. As a computer company, Apple found itself as a niche manufacturer, using software and industrial design to differentiate their hardware from other PC manufacturers.

There was a period of time (during the late 80s and early 90s) that the company attempted to compete at a larger scale with the PC, but once Steve Jobs returned to the company he set a course for the company to become an innovator in consumer computer products. The innovations in many cases are not advanced relative to the rest of the industry, but the focus on proper implementation and testing led to products that general consumers find simple and fun to use.

Apple adds value to their hardware by leveraging fashionable and practical industrial implementations, but the move from niche to mainstream in consumer electronics was achieved by distributing software to manage their simple yet elegant mobile computers, formally known as iTunes for Windows. Apple's investment in software engineering and development is anecdotal; iTunes is given away for free to sell more iPods, and the development cost of Mac OS X is a hardware tax. As popular a BSD Unix platform as Mac OS X has become for power users, to the dissatisfaction of many *nix users Mac OS X will not be sold devoid of hardware, because the only reason it exists to the extent that it does today is to sell more iPhones/iPods and Macs. No matter how much money Apple collects through iTunes sales, hardware sold at premium prices is what makes Apple one of the largest technology companies in the world.

Microsoft - The software doesn't necessarily have to be original or good as long as it works, is everywhere, and is open to all interested software developers and hardware vendors. Certainly Windows 7 has come a long way from Windows 1.0, but the key to Microsoft's success was OEM bundling of their operating system on nearly all IBM-compatible PCs. The software is proprietary, but Microsoft has the resources to make it work on anyone's hardware, and it was far cheaper (prior to Linux) for a PC manufacturer to add Windows to the BOM than try to design the software in-house. Apple must sell their hardware at a premium or sell more hardware that re-uses the software they devote a large amount of engineering resources to, but a PC manufacturer takes on substantially less risk by adopting another company's highly available platform.

Microsoft is the only company that every computer user has most likely directly or indirectly purchased software from, and is one of only a few consumer software companies that can charge several hundreds of dollars for a license. To replicate its success in areas outside of Windows and Office, Microsoft has attempted to grow into online services and consumer devices. Initially, these investments were made with the primary purpose of selling more copies of Windows and to keep users in the Microsoft ecosystem, but more recently the company has returned to its roots by focusing on ways to charge the Microsoft tax on consumer devices by regaining control of the hardware platform. Microsoft's gains in the PC-era were thanks to a hardware platform defined by IBM and Intel that many manufacturers adopted. By creating a gaming platform, Microsoft was able to leverage its success with DirectX on Windows to sell games specifically made for the Xbox, each garnering a Microsoft tax. The Xbox 360 has also become a development platform that has led the way to improved user interfaces, performance and efficiency, and innovations such as Kinect.

Microsoft's latest push is in mobile with Windows Phone 7. Windows Mobile became too fragmented, which to Microsoft means too much time spent engineering their operating system for different hardware and less time focused on user experience and speed. The Zune allowed Microsoft to focus on a high-end platform for media consumption and mobile gaming. Windows Phone 7 is a culmination of Windows Mobile, Zune, and Sidekick; by setting the SOC to Snapdragon, Microsoft can focus on innovating on software while selling the OS via third-party hardware sales. As long as Microsoft can continue to draw attention to their software efforts and collect money directly from most businesses and indirectly from most consumers, Microsoft will continue to be a dominant technology player.

Amazon.com - The pinnacle of direct sales, the website that began with a dial-up accessible book order site now sells everything from toilet paper to food and televisions that are delivered straight to your door overnight if you so choose. The company is still a teenager yet has sold millions of Kindle e-readers, a hardware platform designed by Amazon.com with the sole intent of selling e-books. In fact, e-book sales have now surpassed both paperbook and hardcover sales, accounting for over 40% of book sales on Amazon.com. Apple has just entered the e-book market following the introduction of the iPad last year, but the price of the iPad and its tablet design makes it more difficult for Apple to compete. Even though Barnes and Noble and other brick-and-mortar stores have been selling Sony's e-reader product for years before Amazon.com started selling the Kindle, their success has been so limited that all of Amazon's peers started making their own e-reader devices to compete.

Hardware is only one area that Amazon.com has been successful at using to sell more goods. Their website is a popular destination for social networking and product research, and their intelligent product search and recommendation algorithms leads to more sales. The marketplace is open to competitors and allows small and large resellers to sell used and new items, all grouped under the respective product listing. The company has also been successful at providing other retailers (such as Target and Toys 'R Us) an online presence using a similar site layout and leveraging Amazon's search algorithm and order processing. Amazon.com is also a leading cloud computing provider, providing APIs for storage and processing that can help all businesses small or large.

Unlike Apple and Microsoft, who leverage their ecosystems to sell hardware and software, respectively, Amazon.com does not limit platform support to their own devices. The Kindle software application is available for iOS, Android, and WebOS, they use the universal mp3 format for music, and they make their movies and TV shows available online (using Flash) and offline on devices compatible with Microsoft's DRM. Amazon.com on-demand movies and TV shows are also available for TVs and the Roku. By proliferating their services and products to almost all Internet-connected devices, Amazon.com can sell you goods and services no matter where you are on Earth. (No Internet connection, no problem! Kindle came with free 3G in the U.S. from the get-go.)

Google.com - "Don't Be Evil", the mantra of a company who's goal is to connect you to the rest of the world (with ads). What began as a PhD research project at Stanford became the brand most people associate with Internet search as Kleenix is to tissues. Google was just a site crawler with an intelligent search algorithm on the back-end, with a simple text front-end that remains mostly intact today.

Google is much more than a text search page in 2011. While the majority of Google's revenue still comes from keyword advertisements on top of Google sites and many third-party websites, the company is trying to grow into video and image advertisements through acquisitions of Youtube and Doubleclick, respectively. Google acquired Keyhole in 2004 for their global map satellite presence, on which they've fostered the most popular location service, Google Maps. Subsequently, Google purchased Android in 2005, which is quickly becoming the defacto mobile operating system akin to Microsoft Windows in the 90s. Following the purchase of AdMob in 2009, Google can add mobile application advertising to the list of marketing services it provides, giving it access to iOS and WebOS users along with Android.

To Google, the more time someone spends using its services and software, the more opportunities the company has to display an advertisement, whether it be text, image, or video. The information system that is Google also provides for analytics and, more importantly, targeted advertising. It is to the company's advantage to provide services and software for free in exchange for the user's attention, and as with any marketing company, the more positive the experience, the more likely the user will continue using the company's services and pay attention to advertisements.

Google contributes a lot to open-source, and funds many independent software projects of its own and throughout the world. Apple has and give-and-take relationship with open-source, but Google tends to give more than take, helping the technology industry evolve quickly. Google's APIs tend to be open to any software, but Android has changed the company's focus to developing software for its mobile platform only. This is a safe gamble since Android is quickly proliferating to tens if not hundreds of mobile devices, but that is contrary to their vision of being everywhere. Ultimately, Google will be where they want to be with Android because of the amount of information that passes through a mobile device and will achieve their goal of being everywhere the user is.

Wrap-Up - Each of the four technology titans bases its business on a single driving force (hardware, software, direct sales, advertising), but modern computing is converging at a fast rate, resulting in more competition and technical evolution. Other technology companies aspire to be like Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and Google, but the lack of focus on a single driving force has caused them be second-tier. Despite this, there is still a lot of room in the industry for companies to grow and compete, and the leaders of each force will change based on who can garner the popular attention, but ultimately technology prevails. Now if only we can gain full control of our planet and start exploring other planets for minerals and facility...

Joshua Topolsky Late Night Motorola and HPalm Demo

Check out the Motorola Atrix with netbook dock, Motorola Xoom, and very well executed Palm Veer, Pre^3, and TouchPad / Touch to Share demos below.

Palm WebOS 3.0 vs. Google Android 3.0 (HoneyComb) and User Interfaces [Updated]

Now that WebOS 3.0 for the Palm TouchPad has been announced and a more extensive demo of Android 3.0 was shown, it is time to evaluate these tablet UIs and the advantages and disadvantages to each approach.

Before we begin, let's review the classic UI approaches of Microsoft in Windows and Apple in Mac OS (X and iOS). The original Apple Mac UI (circa 1984) only supported running one application at a time (sound familiar?), with a centralized application menu bar at the top of the screen. The Apple menu bar (still in use today) changes based on what application is currently in focus. A single application can have multiple windows in Mac OS, but there is only a title bar attached to a window. By contrast, Microsoft attaches a menu bar along with the title bar to each window, which typically represents a single application. Closing a window will terminate the application on Windows if there are no remaining windows tied to that application; closing a window on Mac OS does not terminate the application, however. Prior to the Windows taskbar and the Mac dock, a task manager or top menu drop-down was used to manage any backgrounded applications, respectively. The modern Windows 7 taskbar and Mac OS X dock both provide an indication of running applications and quick access to launching docked or pinned applications, but the menu bar remains mostly unchanged, albeit hidden at times based on user preference or full-screen mode.

The proliferation of multitouch displays has reinvigorated the UI debate. Aside from making Windows 7 more touch-friendly, Microsoft has taken a different approach with Windows Phone 7, in which applications are incorporated in panels (similar to Zune or Xbox) where only one application is in focus at a time. Microsoft, Apple, Google, Palm, and RIM follow the same trend on mobile touchscreen displays as the original Palm OS, but the degree to which applications are allowed to run in the background widely varies based on what mode the application is perceived to be in. Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 has limited multitasking to OS services similar to the approach Apple had taken in iOS until 4.x. Apple introduced limited third-party multitasking based on certain events like audio playback, but the OS can still suspend an application if more memory is needed for another application and suspends the main process of a task when it is no longer in focus. Using Spaces on Mac OS provides an environment for each running application, much like what iOS is likely to do in the next iteration of their UI when there will be a gesture to switch between backgrounded applications. Google's Android treats applications more like Microsoft's PocketPC OS of the past, allowing applications to remain running in the background but opting to suspend applications if other applications are requesting for memory.

RIM continues down the path of real-time operating systems, moving from Blackberry OS to QNX; while the UI changed drastically during the transition from one core to the other, the approach of running applications seemed to remain relatively the same. Blackberry OS provides something like a mini-taskbar and sets third-party at a lower priority than Blackberry core applications, such as phone, email and messaging, but every running application is given a guaranteed time-slice. On the Blackberry Playbook, visible applications can remain running when out-of-focus or they can be paused to conserve battery.

Palm's approach for running applications continues to be based on the PDA and smartphone revolutions that the company led with the Palm Pilot and the Handspring Treo, respectively. Therefore, the primary PIM functions are what continue to drive the interaction between applications and the core services of WebOS. The Palm SDK provides access to the central database that contains contact information and messages, and the Internet is essentially a series of databases with useful information to applications, hence why the move to web APIs made the most sense. The PDK still provides hardware access needed for audio and graphics intensive applications. The card interface provides a way not only of organizing running applications, but also a way to stack information in a way that makes it easier to organize your life on-the-go. It also makes it easier to consume information and media on a larger screen, and is poised to contend with the dominant desktop UIs of Mac and Windows. (If the web wasn't so important to WebOS, Cards would be a funny name jibe at Windows for desktops and laptops.)

Android is taking many of the UI enhancements added by Palm in WebOS (courtesy of former Palm Senior Director of Human Interface and User Experience Matias Duarte, now Google User Experience Director), but embodies a mix between Windows and Mac OS without providing a way to view multiple applications simultaneously. While WebOS has yet to introduce the ability to dock and use multiple applications simultaneously, it is much closer to providing this ability than Google is with Android 3.0. The way Android 3.0 displays multiple notifications and provides the ability to dismiss or control them is taken from WebOS 1.0, the placement of notifications and the taskbar with shortcuts or menu for running applications is very similar to the Windows 7 taskbar, and the desktop takes widgets from Windows/Android and multiple screens from KDE/Ubuntu and ties them directly to applications. In a way, Android is the closest to providing a view into multiple applications through the use of widgets, but it is quite limited and not as usable as having the application in fullscreen. Google services do add a lot to the mix though; the tablet Gmail application takes some design cues from Palm's Enyo SDK and Windows (Android fragments vs. modular regions, menu bar), the animation framework and renderscript is similar to Apple's iOS and Palm WebOS, and the notification system from WebOS. Check out the Android 3.0 demo below if you haven't seen it already.



[Updated 2/12/2011 8:48PM]
Palm WebOS brings multitasking on mobile touchscreens to the next level. PDK applications that are fullscreen have full access to hardware acceleration; when multiple card mode is initiated, PDK applications are paused but can be resumed nearly instantly once they are in fullscreen again. SDK applications are essentially browser tabs that can be running simultaneously in the background. When an SDK application has a card open, it is sharing resources with any other open cards. When an SDK application is closed, it can register to check for web updates along with other applications at a set interval, which allows it to pop-up in the notification area. It can also reside solely in the notification area to provide regular updates (such as weather or tasks to be completed). The advantage of treating the card interface as a task manager is to make it well known to the user what may currently be contending for resources, while providing an option for an application to check for updates when it has been swiped away in a controlled fashion, similar to push notifications but locally. Push notifications for these events would be nice though; that is one mark that both Google and Apple have on HP.

The niceties of WebOS 3.0 include the sharing of text messages and ability to forward phone calls from a WebOS phone to WebOS tablet, bumping an open webpage from the phone to tablet (or vice-versa), card stacking, and with the Enyo SDK improved access to shared databases and a concentric UI for multiple size screens. It was sad not to see any sort of bluetooth stylus option or the ability to use multiple cards simultaneously in a split-view fashion (as outlined in my tablet predictions), and the gesture area will certainly be missed. If you haven't seen the Think Beyond event yet, check it out below...at least the video demo in HP's event was no Lady-Killer.

Motorola Atrix

This Android phone has sparked my interest due to one notable feature: webtop mode. This would be a great feature to use as a developer and a multitasker, and although it does not function nearly as well on the latter as WebOS might on a tablet or netbook, it provides a great environment for exploring and using Android apps and browsing the web when you require something more than a single-screen Android device can provide. Anyhow, check out the entire video from Engadget to see Joshua Topolsky switch between a PC dock, a netbook dock, and a TV dock. Spoiler: the screen becomes a virtual mouse for the TV when in webtop mode.

PalmPad Render

9" and 7" expected...i'll take one of the former!

Upcoming Palm Tablet Predictions

Anticipation for the WebOS tablet almost overshadows Computing Titans of Today (Part 2) [no worries, that blog posting will arrive soon ;-) ]. However, with CES 2011 coming to an end and HP Palm finally scheduling a WebOS event February 9, the moment is ripe for Palm tablet predictions. To preface, let's start with a quick overview of WebOS 2.0.

WebOS 2.0 brings enhancements to universal search, card (i.e visible running applications) organization, customizable text auto-completion, different touchstone screen states, and many minor feature additions such as Bluetooth keyboard and VPN support. Just Type (formerly known as universal search) adds support for searching application indexes (such as email), Google suggestions, and more search engines with the option to add any website that WebOS detects as search-compatible. Just Type also provides quick access to updating a Facebook status, posting to Twitter, and creating a new note, memo, or email.



Text Assist wraps support for auto-capitalization, auto-correction, and user customizable shortcuts (similar to Palm OS). Exhibition provides for customization of the Palm screen while the device is on the Touchstone.



Arguably the most touch tablet friendly feature is the card interface, and the addition of stacks provide an organization method that is not only useful on small screen but large screens as well. On a device with a 3.1" screen like the Palm Pre or even a 2.63" screen like the Palm Pixi, using stacks makes having 10+ cards open simultaneously a lot more manageable. When one card opens up a web page or email card, for example, the cards are automatically stacked, and moving a card into or out of a stack functions the same way as re-arranging cards in WebOS 1.x. The following video is a good demonstration of how stacking cards looks and works.



On a WebOS tablet, I anticipate that stacks will actually appear expanded when in view so that multiple cards can be used simultaneously. The Notion Ink Adam can display three Android applications on their 10.1" 1024x600 screen and also support applications with split views or full screen apps, but scrolling between applications can be cumbersome without a method to group applications into mini-workspaces.



One of the more exciting things in development at HP Palm is the follow-up to the Palm Ares SDK, the Palm Enyo SDK. HP Palm is working not only to improve performance of the Webkit engine to work on memory starved devices such as the original Palm Pre and the Palm Pixi but also provide a basis for applications that can easily expand to being used on larger screens. Palm demonstrated a mail application that, running on a mobile showed only one screen at a time, but when running on a larger screen showed three panes simultaneously. This also parallels windowed vs. full screen applications on a desktop; on a tablet, an application like mail could either be placed on one pane or expand to three panes based on user preference. The following is a technology demonstration of Palm Enyo.



The Bluetooth keyboard support will be useful when coupled with a touchstone accessory that could be used with a WebOS 2.0 device with a larger screen, such as a PalmPad or a phone with an HDMI out to an external screen. A Wacom-like stylus would also be slick and is a possibility thanks to HP.

One feature that I would love to see on WebOS tablet (and phone) is a screen of widgets similar to the Dashboard feature on Mac OS X. I prefer not to clutter the desktop like Android tends to, but having a screen that can be summoned in or out via gesture would be useful. At the moment the notifications section already provide me with the current temperature and is a good location for small snippets of information, and Exhibition will be good for providing access to news headlines and more weather information, so Palm WebOS is not totally lacking on that front.

So to wrap-up, expectations are very high for the WebOS tablet, but the UI enhancements brought to WebOS 2.0 can be expanded to bring an excellent tablet experience that should knock Notion Ink's Adam, RIM's Playbook, and Google's Android Honeycomb out of the water. In the meantime, enjoy video demos from Notion Ink, RIM, and Google and be sure to check out Palm's former UI designer (now working on Honeycomb) Matias Duarte interview on Engadget.

Computing Titans of Today (Part 1)

There are many computer technology companies that can be considered innovators and market drivers both in the past and even into the present, but there are only a notable few who really stand out and simultaneously frighten and inspire both their counterparts and their customers. It is interesting to note that these companies overlap so much that for all intensive purposes they are competitors, yet they all find themselves developing for one-another's platform to remain relevant to all of their customers.

If you are a 2010 computer user, you likely know which four companies I am about to talk about. But first I would like to break these companies into their respective financial markets to try and account for the driving forces of these companies.

Hardware - The original primary driver of the computing industry. When there is a need to create and compute, the first thing required is good hardware. What began as a calculator evolved into a general purpose computer, handling any task from accounting to communications, graphic design to writing, and launching a rocket to feeding a person's lungs and heart. Regardless of whether a company wants to sell a mainframe, a desktop, or an embedded device, software is required to unleash the true potential of the device. The greater the profit margin desired, the more value that must be extracted from the hardware in the form of higher quality parts and design, better firmware and software design and implementation, and mechanical and industrial design. But ultimately the goal is to sell more hardware.

Software - The next big driver of the computing industry. When the hardware was readily available but the hardware companies could not keep up with the demand for more applications, the software development had to be incentivized independent from hardware sales. This was and continues to be a difficult item to sell as there is no physical object being sold; instead, a license is sold with no guarantee on usability for a large period of time. The value of software is dependent upon what currently exists that can also accomplish a similar task compared to what time efficiency, usability, and flashiness its derivative or replacement can provide. And finally, the value of the product and/or continued development and features depend on how much work is required to develop that software, all of which is driven by the hardware and the engineers or developers. On the other hand, the profit margin can be higher than hardware by increasing sales and with exposure to parallel functions and applications. So the goal is to sell more of the same software without requiring too much free support and updates (or to give out software but charge lots for support and updates).

Direct Sales - The dotcom boom led to another big driver of the computing industry. In order to increase profit, a store needs to sell large quantities of stuff with low overhead. Selling certain types of physical goods can garner a decent margin, but increasing variety encourages larger orders and repeat customers, and selling virtual goods, especially when these virtual goods are homegrown, provide the greatest revenue potential. Focus is on ease of purchase in all manners possible, anywhere the customer happens to be.

Advertising - The main driver of radio and television is also the latest big driver of the computing industry. More eyeballs equate to greater revenue, and the more technology a company owns that attracts attention, the larger the profit margin. Rapid adaptation is required to retain and increase mindshare, which certainly makes it the most difficult avenue to pursue, but with the potential for greater exposure and reward.

The positive aspect of having four driving forces in the computing industry is that the technology must adapt rapidly, which in turn leads to convergence as, in the end, all computers have similar hardware and software but different system implementations that produce similar results.

The negative aspect is that small technology innovators will struggle to survive in this landscape unless they manage to find a niche slightly outside these four domains, are acquired by a company with strengths in one of these four domains, or steal enough mindshare away from a weakened technology player to gain enough wealth to compete with a dominant player in of these four domains.

This leads me to formally introduce the four dominant leaders of the technology industry in 2010. Once again, this is likely to change in future years, but all these companies have either acquired enough wealth, mindshare, or both to continue to innovate, dominate, and compete effectively. If it wasn't for the existence of these four driving forces, there would be a technology monopoly (think Microsoft in the '90s). Despite the antitrust rulings against Microsoft being fairly weak and too late, the resurgance of Apple and the arrival of Amazon.com and Google have led to enough competition to provide some sort of balance to the consumer computing industry.

To be continued...

Palm Revenue Possibilities

A lot has changed since I last posted about a possible Palm and Nokia Union. Nokia has partnered with Intel and merged Moblin with Maemo to create Meego. Palm launched the Pre Plus and Pixi Plus on Verizon but flopped with the launch, thus resulting in an awesome deal for Verizon subscribers (free Mobile Hot Spot!). Apple released the iPad and iPhone OS 4.0, addressing multitasking in a not-so-elegant way and completely overlooking notification reform. Finally, HTC announced the Evo on Sprint, surpassing Palm in the launch of the first 4G phone on their preferred network.

Even though Palm should still have ~$400 million in the bank (which really should be able to keep Palm alive longer than a year if they are focusing on R&D engineering and considering they finally dropped their failure of an advertising partner), there are strong rumors that HTC, Cisco, and Lenevo are in the second round of bidding for Palm, so it's about time I throw in my $0.02 and take another stab at it. Enjoy!

Cisco - Strong Internet-centric company with more than $30 billion in the bank. Powerful media-rich product line including the Flip Mini HD, Telepresence (see the two videos below for a sample), Digital Whiteboard, and of course Linksys. They were also one of the first companies to support Wimax/4G, but despite being the backbone of the Internet and being a fairly open company (WRT54G and specification-wise), they are lacking in one key area and that is smartphones. With Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Nokia growing in significance with mobile platforms and the Internet, Cisco may desire to branch out even further in consumer devices and adopt Palm WebOS as their mobile platform and help bring a better multimedia and connected experience. I would certainly stick with WebOS and Palm devices if Cisco purchased and invested in Palm.

HTC - Produces popular smartphones that currently run Windows Mobile and Android. Hardware revisions seem to hit the market very rapidly in recent months (Touch Pro 2, HD2, Nexus One, Evo). Palm WebOS would benefit from solid hardware with frequent revisions and modern features that compete with Nokia. Palm's patent portfolio in the PDA and smartphone market could help HTC ward off Apple in their present quarrel.

Lenevo - Owner of IBM's laptop and desktop division and demonstrated a cool laptop with a detachable screen tablet called the IdeaPad U1 (see below for video). They are currently using a Linux-based operating system for the detached screen. Lenevo also introduced an Android-based smartphone at CES, but in a quickly fragmented Android marketplace WebOS could prove to be a unique differentiator for Palm. WebOS would also be a great OS for a tablet / iPad competitor (maybe the IdeaPad U2?). The OS could also be licensed to Lenevo as a tablet OS; either way, I would probably buy one.

Don't forget to take a look at Engadget's take on this. Long live Palm and WebOS!

U.S. Smartphone Adoption is Being Held Back by Wireless Carriers...YEAH I SAID IT!

It is amazing how much smartphones have grown in popularity in the last few years. The mobile market took much longer to mature than the general computing market. It took a licensable advanced and continually evolving computer architecture (ARM), shrinking process technology, dense memory capacities (both in solid-state and RAM), and optimization of open-source operating systems (Darwin and Linux) and software (Webkit) for mobile platforms to bring about an enjoyable media and internet-rich experience to mobile phones. The PC market was able to thrive with a proprietary computer architecture (x86), closed-source operating system (Windows), and inefficient software, but Moore's law and form factor made up for the loss of performance and capability caused by this approach.

Thanks to the steps (whether intentional or not) made in the computing market to share technological innovations and reduce cost, size, and power consumption, all while increasing performance and storage capacity, products such as the Apple iPhone, Windows Mobile 6.x, Palm WebOS, and the Blackberry have made it possible to not only schedule but also accomplish tasks and consume live on-demand content while in transit. Apple introduced the MessagePad, a 7" x 4" device running Newton that provided one of the first stylus-based implementations with PIM and sync technology. Palm brought about PIM and sync functionality and mobile applications with the Palm Pilot 1000, a 4.72" x 3" device running a 16MHz 68000 processor with only 128KB of RAM. The Nokia 9000 was one of the first mobile phones with web and PIM capabilities. By the time Windows CE evolved into PocketPC devices, ARM (pushed via Intel's XScale) clocked at 133MHz+ made it possible for software to play music (without needing an expansion Handspring module) and video. Once Direct3D support arrived on the Microsoft platform and 400MHz processors became commonplace, mobile gaming on general purpose devices took off. Returning to smartphones, the Symbian OS (now open-source) combined with an Ericsson R380 touch-screen phone brought about the first modern PDA phone, followed by the Handspring (now Palm) Treo. The RIM Blackberry smartphone was the first mobile email solution that was fast and robust, thanks to the enterprise server software developed by RIM.

Up until email and web services were made available on smartphones, the barrier of entry was cost of the device; aside from exclusivity and handset tied to a specific carrier, one could still opt for a standard voice plan and still take advantage of using Hot-or-Active sync'd and preinstalled applications. Admittedly, having 2 different wireless standards (CDMA vs. GSM) and locking people into multi-year contracts with a phone that was locked to that specific carrier did not help the industry as a whole, but the low cost of entry was beneficial to the explosion of mobile phone usage in the U.S.

Then came the Blackberry email plan, adding $15 a month to a voice plan. The wireless web plans were not compatible with all phones (in my case, the Kyocera 7135 on U.S. Cellular), and they were costly ($15 a month for each desired "service" or $1.50+ per access, $0.50/MB). Add on top of that text messaging fees (up to $20 a month for unlimited, $5 for 250 messages, $0.25 per message) and you're easily paying up to $70 a month per person for wireless service! No wonder text messages had such a delayed start in the states compared to Europe and Asia. And with slow adoption of text messages, there was a limited driving force to use MMS; U.S. phones are just starting to come standard with 2-5 megapixel cameras, but Nokia and Samsung were selling 5 megapixel feature phones over 2 years ago!

Then Apple came along with the iPhone. By incorporating innovations Apple and other mobile device companies have been developing for over 15 years, they released a device that could handle the multimedia, PDA, and mobile web needs of the populace. Adapting Safari and using a capacitive touch screen was certainly innovative, but arguably Apple's negotiation with a wireless carrier was the move to help spur mass adoption. Apple's iPod really took off once they released a Windows version and added a music store to iTunes, working with the labels on a solution they were comfortable with. Unfortunately, in the case of mobile data, the trend went in the opposite direction. Shortly after music within the iTunes store lost its DRM and maintained a relatively low cost that Apple dictated, the iPhone monthly plan went from unlimited data (using Edge) and 200 text messages for $60 a month (~$15-20 a month premium) to just unlimited data (using 3G or Edge) for $70 a month ($30 a month premium). For the equivalent plan to the original iPhone, an average iPhone user would be paying $75 + tax and fees. In other words, as much as Apple tried to redefine mobile usage and spur mass adoption, AT&T changes the terms once again and we're back to square one.

These days, buying a smartphone through a carrier typically involves signing a 2 year contract for a plan costing $70 a month or more. The Blackberry is still selling a large number phones due to being free or nearly free with contract, but I suspect that the majority of cell phone users are still hesitant to adopt a smartphone due to monthly plan costs. When the decision lies between choosing a feature phone with the option of basic web capabilities for $10 extra and a smartphone that requires the customer to pay $30 extra per month, most people will choose the feature phone unless they can really justify the expense. Let's not forget that modern smartphones have wifi, thus nullifying the need for the extra expense, yet it is forced upon the customer at purchase.

Interesting enough, PC can be built or purchased for under the cost of a smartphone at retail, yet the modern smartphone is more personal than a personal computer. Yes, people may argue that they do not need a smartphone, but at one point one may have made the same argument about the personal computer. As smartphones are becoming more advanced and PCs cheaper, it would be natural for them to appeal to a larger audience. But I know people personally who will not buy a smartphone because of how much it adds to the cost of a plan. Sprint is heading in the right direction with their Simply Everything plan (which includes unlimited data and texting), but Sprint (just like every other U.S. carrier except for T-Mobile) requires you to pay $70 a month for a plan. T-Mobile is also heading in the right direction by encouraging people to purchase a smartphone (like the Nexus One via Google) out-right and then opt to pay for the plan desired. As much as the U.S. audience loves free phones, I think that ultimately people will have to accept the full cost of the phone so that we can finally start to have a real mobile computer revolution, free from carrier intervention.

Finally though, I think that we are moments away from being able to purchase data-only as the base plan for all the services we desire. We shouldn't be required to pay for voice minutes or text messages; instead, we'll pay for data through a utility company and subscribe to voice and data services through independent providers. Yes, this means wireless data will be metered, but this way you will pay for exactly what you use. By reducing the base plan cost of a mobile device to a modest fee, people will be more willing to pay for smartphones and the data access that powers them, and we'll be able to change the way we look at mobile forever.

See also:
Smartphone Device & Chip Market Opportunities 2010
Editorial: Voice rate cuts, data rate hikes, and the case for metered billing

Resurrecting Publications

As I was flipping through the past week of tech news in Google Reader, I stumbled upon a Time Inc. Magazine Tablet demo and my jaw dropped. Although I wouldn't necessarily pick up a Sports Illustrated, even in digital form, the live cover page, photo flipping, ease and speed of navigation, and multimedia throughout the magazine makes it a very compelling device. Just the way that the engineers implemented the ability to rearrange pages based on reading preference is just brilliant. Maybe my three years of mostly unopened Wired issues will finally become a thing of the past. In fact, I am tempted to hold off on renewing my subscription until the digital tablet edition arrives.

Now if only they will allow me to flip through my Google Reader quickly, I'll be set. Anyhow, check out the video below.

Nintendo Should Apply a Tick-Tock Strategy to Gaming Consoles (thanks @Engadget for the inspiration)

I was listening to Engadget Podcast 169 and they started talking about Nintendo releasing the DSi LL, a slightly larger DSi. They (as well as others) have speculated that it is really for the older generation; given the success of Brain Age and the existence of a Japanese dictionary and other educational and productivity apps, it makes sense to release a slightly larger version to appeal to a different croud and inspire people to buy the new device. Those who purchased the DS or DS Lite for the gaming innovation don't really have a motivation to move to the DSi, given that the DSi does not support Gameboy Advance games and (as far as I know) does not allow you to convert your physical collection to a virtual format (R4 anyone?).

The Engadget guys then went on to joke that Nintendo will release a new version of the Wii with support for a gaming chamber (but with the same Gamecube graphics). As funny as that scenario would be, more realisically Nintendo should follow more of a tick-tock strategy (similar to Intel) with how they approach console updates. There may be a Wii HD in the works; rumours started about it this week but I have been hoping since the Wii first came out that an HD version better be around the corner.

Given that the PS3 and Xbox-360 are struggling to catch up on the revolutionary approach the Wii took, I think Nintendo is really onto something. All they have to do is provide a tick (user interface upgrade) and a tock (higher definition graphics) at some regular interval and they will be able to stay light-years ahead of the competition.