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Thursday, May 30, 2013

Windows 8 Has Been A Major Fail for Microsoft, So Now It Will Fix Everything It Botched And Make It Easier To Navigate And Customize.


Windows 8 Has Been A Major Fail for Microsoft, So Now It Will Fix Everything It Botched And Make It Easier To Navigate And Customize.
Windows 8 Has Been A Major Fail for Microsoft, So Now It Will Fix Everything It Botched And Make It Easier To Navigate And Customize.


Microsoft Corp is trying to fix what it got wrong with Window 8 and making the operating system easier to navigate and enabling users to set up the software so it starts in a more familiar format that it originally designed for personal computers.

Later this year, it will release a free update, called Windows 8.1, represents Microsoft's concessions to long-time customers taken aback by the dramatic changes to an operating system that had become a staple in households and offices around the world during the past 20 years.

Microsoft gave The Associated Press a glimpse at Windows 8.1 Wednesday. A more extensive tour of Windows 8.1 and several new applications built into the upgrade will be provided in San Francisco at a Microsoft conference for programmers scheduled to begin June 26.

With the release of Windows 8 seven months ago, Microsoft introduced a startup screen displaying applications in a mosaic of interactive tiles instead of static icons. The major design shift pissed off many users who wanted the option to launch the operating system in a mode that resembled the old setup.

Windows 8.1 will now provide that option, although Microsoft isn't bringing back the start menu. The old Start menu that could be found in the left-hand corner of a computer screen by clicking a Windows logo on all other versions of the operating system since 1995. The lack of a start button ranks among the biggest gripes about Windows 8, but not the only one.

The switch should ease the "cognitive dissonance" caused by Windows 8, said Antoine Leblond, who helps oversee the operating system's program management.

As with Windows 8, the search bar can found by pulling out a menu from the right side of a display screen. Rather than requiring a user to select a category, such as "files" or "apps," Windows 8.1 will make it possible to find just about anything available on the computer's hard drive or on the Web by just typing in a few words. For instance, a search for "John Wayne" might display biographical information about the late movie star pulled from the Web, a selection of photos and video and even songs she sang. Anyone who want to hear a particular song stored on the computer or play a specific game such as "Monopoly" will just need to type a title into the search box to gain access within seconds.

The redesigned search tool is meant to provide Windows 8.1 users with "pure power and instant entertainment," said Jensen Harris, Microsoft's director of user experience for the operating system.

Applications also can be found by sorting them by letter or category.

Other new features in Windows 8.1 include a built-in connection with Microsoft's online storage system, SkyDrive, to back up photos, music and program files; a lock-up screen that will display a slide show of a user's favorite pictures; larger and smaller interactive tiles than Windows 8 has; and a photo editor.

Windows 8 has been widely panned as a disappointment, even though Microsoft says it has licensed more than 60 million copies so far. International Data Corp. (a major research firm), blamed the redesigned operating system for worsening a decline in PC sales by confusing prospective buyers. Meanwhile, Windows 8 hasn't proven it's compelling enough to put a major dent in the popularity of Apple Inc.'s pioneering iPad or other tablets running on Google Inc.'s Android software.

Microsoft had better sets things right with this new update of Windows 8.1; because the outlook for the PC market keeps getting gloomier. IDC now expects PC shipments to fall by nearly 8 percent this year, worse than its previous forecast of a 1 percent dip. IDC also anticipates tablets will outsell laptop computers for the first time this year.

Tablets sales is now being driven largely by less expensive devices with 7- and 8-inch display screens, but Microsoft built Windows 8 to primarily to run on tablets with 10-inch to 12-inch screens; an oversight that Leblond said the company is addressing by ensuring Windows 8.1 works well on smaller devices.

If Windows 8.1 doesn't stimulate more sales of PCs and tablets running on the operating system, it could it could find itself falling from a leading technology company, to a follower and also ran.

Windows 8.1 desktop will now feature the Start menu icon in the lower left corner
Windows 8.1 desktop will now feature the Start menu icon in the lower left corner

Monday, May 20, 2013

Tumblr The Free Blogging Site With 300 Million Users And $18 Million In Revenue, Is Bought By Yahoo For $1.1Billion In Cash.

Tumblr The Free Blogging Site With 300 Million Users And $18 Million In Revenue, Is Bought By Yahoo For $1.1Billion In Cash.
Tumblr The Free Blogging Site With 300 Million Users And $18 Million In Revenue, Is Bought By Yahoo For $1.1Billion In Cash.


Yahoo's board unanimously approved a $1.1 billion cash deal to buy the blogging site this Sunday. It's a big risk for Yahoo, since Tumblr makes only about $18 million each year, though it has been valued at $800 million.

So why is Yahoo doing it?

Google has YouTube. Facebook has Instagram. Now, Yahoo will have Tumblr. Who is next?

This move represents a growing trend of large billion dollar tech companies buying small but performing startups to get an edge in the market.

Yahoo, an older and not so popular search and community internet company (which does well in Asia), now has a thriving social network.

Marissa Mayer announced on her own Tumblr that Tumblr would continue to operate independently and "we promise not to screw it up."


Tumblr founder Karp also issued a statement on Tumblr, promising its mission to "empower creators to make their best work and get in front of the audience they deserve" isn't changing.

You don't buy a company earning $18 million a year for $1 billion, and not change it. Yahoo will have to change it in order to increase the revenue to justify the cost of buying it.

The really question is simple: Will the future changes to Tumblr to allow it to generate income, drive off it's users and force the party to move to a new service closer to Tumblr of old?

Will ads and pay service end up killing the free blogging site? Only the future will tell.

Monday, May 6, 2013

No More Free YouTube? The Google Owned Video Website Ready To Soon Launch Paid Subscription Channels

No More Free YouTube? The Google Owned Video Website Ready To Soon Launch Paid Subscription Channels
No More Free YouTube? The Google Owned Video Website Ready To Soon Launch Paid Subscription Channels

The YouTube video sharing website could launch a paid content platform for some of its specialist video channels as early as this week, according to The Financial Times.

It is reported that this would be an 'a la carte' service, which could have as many as 50 video channels and would have single channel subscriptions for as little as $1.99 a month. YouTube confirmed to CNET in February that it was developing such a service but did not indicate when it would be ready for subscribers.

YouTube declined to comment on a targeted launch date for the new pay service and reiterating earlier statements on the topic that it had "nothing to announce," but that it was "looking into creating a subscription platform that could bring even more great content to YouTube for our users to enjoy and provide our creators with another vehicle to generate revenue from their content, beyond the rental and ad-supported models we offer."

Obviously, a paid content platform would give the Google owned video site another revenue stream, while allowing channel operators to finance different content production, such as TV shows and movies, a source said.

According to the report, YouTube has approached a handful of producers about developing content for a subscription platform that the video sharing website had hoped to launch this year, and that it was also mulling a plan to charge for other items, such as entire libraries of videos, live events, and even self-help or financial advice shows; according to an AdAge report in January.

Not long after that AdAge report, two lines of code appeared in YouTube for Android that referred to paid channel subscriptions. The code, apparently intended to generate messages on users' screens, say: "You can only subscribe to this paid channel on your computer," and "You can only unsubscribe from this paid channel on your computer."

Looks like the Cable paid subscription channel model is moving over to the Internet - viva la revolucion!!

Monday, April 29, 2013

Microsoft is trying to re-brand itself with insperation from Nike - Just Restart It



The Windows Phone design studio management team recently held a talk about 're-imagining' Microsoft at a design day event in Norway, and it looks like they are going to follow-up the recent re-branding of Windows, Office and the Microsoft logo, it looks like they are going to follow that with re-branding of Bing, Skype, Yammer, and Xbox.

In a 2 year old video of how Microsoft looked to rebrand its key products shown at the design day in Norway, Windows Phone design studio general manager Albert Shum and Todd Simmons, creative director at Wolff Olins; said that the design work for the same Bing logo and what appears to be a future Skype or Yammer brand change. "Other brands are coming along too," they notes before the reveal. "Bing, Skype, Yammer, Xbox…everything is under development as well." The logos fit Microsoft's new approach to design, with a flattened look and colors that align well with other products.

Throughout the presentation, the pair discuss the alignment of design, marketing, product, and brand at Microsoft, and they also reveal some of the influences for the company's new look. "We thought about Nike," says Simmons. "When you experience the Nike brand in whatever form you may experience it, there's always a Nikeness right…you can certainly see it without the logo." Microsoft took an identical approach so products looked similar together, but could be individual with their own brand.

Changing the Windows brand was the key part of Microsoft's "re-imagination" says Simmons. "We also knew we wouldn't be able to change a single thing if weren't able to change Windows." People, reach, and choice were the "three main drivers" to shift from the past and target consumers in a more meaningful way. The project was, and still is, a huge risk for Microsoft. Changing the look and brand of products that over a billion people use is never easy, but Microsoft has focused on design and people to get its message across.


The full video of the Norway talk (45 minutes long) is here:



Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Top 5 BYOD Blunders When Trying To Realize The Productivity Potential Of Workers Bringing Their Own Devices To Work


Top BYOD Blunders When Trying To Realize The Productivity Potential Of Workers Bringing Their Own Devices To Work
Top 5 BYOD Blunders When Trying To Realize The Productivity Potential
Of Workers Bringing Their Own Devices To Work

Blunder # 1 - No pre planning
Some companies just think – ‘oh people are using their cellphones at work, ok let them use the company network and we will see how it goes and deal with the issues as they arise’. Companies that just open their networks to BYOD without a plan will have real security problems, and they will probably issues that will not be easy to fix or deal with as they arise.

You need to ask questions like:

      Who do we want to use the network?

      Do we want to control access to data or the network based on job function?

      Do we have enough network resources for the additional load?


Blunder # 2 - No BYOD policy

A BYOD policy sets the terms and conditions in which an employee may use a device on the network. These policies can state which activities and apps can be used on the network. A good example of a BYOD policy template is here:



Blunder # 3 - Give access to all data


Networks are set-up with different level of access, and can be configured based on a user by user base. Organize your network so data is only accessed by those who really need it, not everyone on the network.

BYOD seems like a big problem, but real productivity gains can be had if BYOD is implemented correctly. Take it in small steps and remember to focus on data and the user. BYOD is the future of IT, but it will take time and effort to implement it correctly.

Network Security - Top BYOD Blunders When Trying To Realize The Productivity Potential of BYOD
Network Security - Top BYOD Blunders When Trying To Realize The Productivity Potential of BYOD

Blunder # 4 - Device selection
 
Most people don't want to be told what phone or tablet they can use, but it does make a difference for security and performance of the network. Do your research, and publish a recommended list of devices that offer the security and network features that are critical to your network maintaining a high security level.



Blunder # 5 - Lost devices

People lose their phones and tablets all the time. They are often stolen and the phones are then hacked and all data is accessed. Large MDM system allow IT departments to wipe the phones data remotely, and some apps like Tigertext can remote wipe messages as well setting text messages to auto-delete.

Top 5 BYOD Blunders When Trying To Realize The Productivity Potential of BYOD
Top 5 BYOD Blunders When Trying To Realize The Productivity Potential of BYOD