There exists in the marketplace today two dominant operating systems that consumers user–Windows and MacOS. Yes. Linux is there, but let’s be honest, folks, the vast majority of consumers don’t know (or care) what Linux is…if we were talking about OS’s on developer desktops, that’d be a different story. But we’re talking consumer desktops here…

So what is this new OS? Well, it all more or less depends on how widely adopted tablet/slate computers become. One thing you may notice about a number of the annoucements at the recently concluded CES 2010 conference was the sheer number of e-readers and tablet computers. What’s the commonality? Most use this new OS: Android.

What will be interesting to see is not just how Android impacts the mobile marketplace, but how Android impacts tablet PCs. Could Google find a route onto consumer desktops via the tablet PC? It would give Google it’s first real [...] Continue Reading…

Working as an Emerging Technology Strategist for “the world’s largest IT company” (at least in terms of number of employees and physical presences around the world–not to mention the diversity of industries it plays in), I am often asked by people I’ve just met at parties or at informal gatherings “so what cool things are happening in the field of emerging technology?” To which I sigh, and say “if I told you, I’d have to kill you.” No, not really. I’m not that cheesy.
What do you mean when you say “emerging technology”?
Although that’s an easy question to ask, like so many questions, it’s not so easy to answer. How so? Well, think about it for a moment: do you mean what new hardware will be coming out that you should be paying attention to? Is it what cool new software will be debuting next year? Or is it a [...] Continue Reading…

Nosing around StreetView, I discover something that gives me an inordinate amount of glee: the GoogleVan going through the drive thru of a McDonald’s. Oh, woe, Google, I had thought much more of thee: come on–a McDonalds? I expected so much more from The Goog…
So, as I continue to amuse myself with StreetView: The Triangle, I ran across something that made me go “Hmmmm”. If you take a look at StreetView on Walnut Street, and you head past the McDonald’s on Walnut Street, for three segments you get jarringly dropped into…

That’s right: the McDonald’s parking lot. Evidently the GoogVan was cruising past MickeyD’s during lunch, and decided to hit the drive thru.

My proof? Well, take a look at this picture: Obviously the van is pulling away from the drive thru.

Next, take a look back as the GoogVan makes its escape: see the arrow?

The drive thru is one way only. [...] Continue Reading…

Thought for the Day: Ever look where Google is busily taking pictures for it’s StreetView feature? Some of the cities might surprise you: Boise, Idaho. Manchester, New Hampshire. Now, StreetView has come to the Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill area…
So, I was trying to get a map put together for a friend to my house, and in the process I discovered that Google Maps’ StreetView had come to my neighborhood. I’m not a conspiracy theorist. And yes, the title graphic is a bit, er, conspiracy like (I was having fun with it–the eyes in the “oo” of Goog are Eric Schmidt’s…a bit puffy if you ask me). Granted, I was a bit freaked out when I looked at my home address and saw this:

Yes. That’s my house (lens flare and all), with my Acura parked out front (which is in sore need of a wash, but seeing as we’re still [...] Continue Reading…

The coming disruption the big software companies are blind to…
In my last post, I laid out the reasons as to why software development was about to experience a serious disruptive force. I made the argument that open source software, while highly valuable, couldn’t continue to try to live outside the economic realities of our real world lives. But OSS has obviously worked: look at the successes we’ve seen to date. And I concede the point. However, I believe that OSS has been able to carve out a niche because there have, up until now, been no viable alternatives. And that may actually be changing…

Enter SaaS Marketplaces, Collaborative Development Environments, and The Future.
Which is where SaaS marketplaces enter the picture: what if there were online environments where developers could create, collaborate, and connect? What if they could have a central “hub” which allowed them to connect with potential employers? What [...] Continue Reading…