Out of all the special firsts in one’s life, there is one that I will always remember: the first time I fell in love with music.
Of course, all of us are born with the ability to appreciate rhythm and melody, but at some point we transition from being entertained by children’s music to being a real fan of music, conveniently coinciding around the time of puberty.
I remember accidentally tuning into MTV and watching a music video to No Doubt’s Spiderwebs. Till this day, I can not give a reasonable explanation as to why that song appealed to me, nor any song since then. Like with most arts, but especially with music, appreciation doesn’t come from logic but from emotion, and at that point, it simply clicked for me.
With my leftover lunch money, instead of purchasing comic books or toys, I began my music collection in earnest. First it was No Doubt’s Tragic Kingdom album, then the “Can’t Nobody Hold Me Down” single by Puff Daddy and Mase, the Space Jams soundtrack, and unashamedly, the Spice Girls’ debut album.
For me, CDs were almost unaffordably expensive, but these prices were considered the norm at the time, and in order to quench my music thirst I had to pay $15 per album.
Fortunately, around the same time, the proliferation and distribution of MP3 music initiated the digital music boom and the music industry was never the same again.
Compared to days of yesteryear, I no longer am confined to listening only to mainstream music or what the music labels deem most profitable for them. I’m now exposed to a variety of different artists and music genre, and my appreciation for music has only grown.
For adolescents growing up, there exists an ever-expanding number of music discovery tools such as The Hype Machine or Pandora. Aspiring musicians now have a vast music library to draw creative inspiration from, a luxury unavailable to their predecessors. What results is a thriving and truly original music culture.
Unfortunately, the music industry remains obstinate and refuses to adapt to a changing music culture. Instead of working with online music start-ups to develop a sustainable business model, they hold onto the steadfast belief that by suing or shutting down online streaming sites they’ll continue to profit from their antiquated ways of doing business. A number of great music sites have already shut down (e.g. Seeqpod, Muxtape) or have bled to death (e.g. Playlist, Imeem).
Yet, there is one site that has been immune to the labels’ wrath, but mostly because they are a music discovery site centered around emerging or new artists. Either manually or algorithm-based, WeAreHunted.com scrawls through numerous music blogs to aggregate the 99 most talked about emerging songs.
I’ve only been an avid user of WeAreHunted.com since late October and below are songs I particularly enjoy in the past two months. I hope you enjoy them as well.
Compelled to play because all the young boys his age were doing so, Jae-Yoon Ma soon became obsessed. That obsession manifested into countless hours of practice and dedication to the nuances of the game.
Eventually becoming one of the top practitioners of his craft, Jae-Yoon Ma became a professional with a six-figure salary (in US figures) and additional sponsorships from product endorsements. At the ripe age of 18, he could already be considered a celebrity; instantly recognizable from endless exposure on television.
While this barebone description may resonate as a hackneyed account of a rising sport star, most people would not consider what Jae-Yoon plays as a sport. At least not in the traditional sense.
The game in reference is not played over a grassy field but over a computer monitor. It is in fact a video game, specifically, Starcraft, a war-like strategy game released in 1998.
In many ways the rise in popularity of video game competitions as a spectator sport makes sense. Surrounded by video games from a young age, the recent generation is accustomed to viewing electronic sports, or e-Sports, as a form of entertainment.
To sport purists, the longevity of the e-Sport phenomenon comes into question. Yet, the numerous similarities between e-Sports and traditional sports have already supported the trend that e-Sport is here to stay and grow.
In fact, we’ve recently witnessed the evolution and growing pains of an infantile community into a serious business and industry. Recently this year, Jae-Yoon Ma was implicated in a match-fixing scandal along with several other pro-gamers and illegal betting websites.
Immensity of Talent
With 60% U.S. households having at least one console and over 80% having a game-capable PC, the ubiquity of games rivals that of any ball and stick for a child growing up.
Many kids have logged thousands of hours into their favorite games, developing a mastery of a game comparable to practicing for a traditional sport.
In Starcraft, the top pro-gamers are able to perform on average of 300 actions per minute with their mouse and keyboard. This rate of decision making is almost unheard of compared to any other sport.
Instead, the number of practice hours required to perform at the top level of these competitions are as strenuous and intense as Kobe Bryant’s well-chronicled practice regimen.
Take, for example, an interview with Jonathan Walsh, a 21 year old Swedish pro-gamer.
“I practiced every hour I didn’t eat, shower or slept during the GSL,” Walsh said. “One day could start at 2 pm and end at 7 am and when I played the most I only had was a few hours over to eat and for shorter breaks.”
One major advantage e-Sport athletes have over their more traditional counterparts is the immediate availability of top-level competition and progress feedback via technology.
These pro-gamers are not confined to local area competition that could inhibit their growth and development. Modern games have incorporated a highly sophisticated multi-player functionality, allowing anyone to play and practice with those of similar skill level at any time during the day.
For any sport, fans want to see the spectacular to be as far removed from the mundane as possible, and to be in awe of greatness or great plays. E-Sport has reached this level for audiences on a wide scale.
Attendance for e-Sporting events have sometimes rivaled that of traditional sport's.
In a relative short period, the gap between the top professional gamer and the recreational player is as large and wide as any other sporting field. As such, the accompanying appreciation and supporters is both warranted and flourishing.
Complexity of the Game
Critics will assert that the finite shelf lives of video games limits the impact any particular game will have on e-Sports. Time-tested traditional sports have endured mainly because of familiarity of the game and a steady cultivation of life-long fans.
Indeed, the inherent fleeting life-span of video games makes a similar trajectory an impossibility. In fact, after 10 years, the longest tenured e-Sport game, Starcraft, has already seen its recent successor, Starcraft II, challenge for mind-share amongst e-Sports fans.
Yet, it can be argued that the constant evolution of video games has helped prevent e-Sports from ever becoming stale or boring. The economics of video game development will always necessitate innovation. The Street Fighter series has already seen countless iterations, yet it’s popularity has seen its strongest growth this year with Street Fighter IV.
This new dynamic has allowed for increased creativity and competition. Strategies that were used to great effect, but perhaps too repetitively, in the past were no longer relevant. Only competitors who were flexible enough in their thinking and abilities are able to thrive in the new environment.
Adoption from a Forward-Looking Country
South Korea has been at the forefront of cutting-edge technology adoption Not only is the country one of the most hyper-connected society in the world – over 90% of the country has the most advanced broadband at home – it is also a major adopter and endorser of e-Sports.
For every commercial and professional aspect of traditional sports, and there will be an equivalent for Starcraft and other e-Sport games in Korea. Pro-gamers are signed into teams, of which there are 12 within the Korean league. Each team is sponsored by a Korean corporation, such as Samsung and SK Telecom.
Matches are broadcast over three different television channels dedicated to the professional gaming scene. Attendance for major events has sometimes reached over 100,000 people, a number usually reserved for Super Bowls and World Cup matches.
It is difficult to determine whether the popularity of e-Sports is unique to Korea or whether the ubiquity and ease of access to a PC has led to such a development.
However, Scandinavian countries, which all rank in the top 10 in Internet penetration rates, have seen a rise in e-Sports popularity and have produced a number of top-tier competitors.
The U.S. still lags behind in this regard, but South Korea and Europe can serve as any indicators, the sport entertainment pie will need to make room for a slice of e-Sports.
1. Never look back in regret, always move onto the next thing.
2. Don’t openly criticize other people, it’s a poor reflection of your own character.
3. Make a fool of yourself. Otherwise you won’t survive. Make sure you’re on the front page, and not the back page.
And the worst advice?
Advice comes in many forms. Ask several people what they think to get many angles to weigh. By never considering one person’s opinion, no one piece of advice is ever bad.
What advice would you give to young entreprenrus on how to best start?
1. To remember that it is impossible to run a business without taking risks.
2. Believe in what you are doing. If you go into something expecting it to fail, 9 times out of 10, it will.
3. Above all, remember to have fun with with it. “The brave may not live forever – but the cautious do not live at all.”
In your career you have had lots of successes, but you have failed in some businesses. What have you learned from those?
1. As an entrepreneur you have to learn very quickly that there’s no such thing as a failure
2. We make and implement decisions quickly — usually before our competitor have held their fifth meeting on the same issue.
3. Protect the downside. Work out in advance all things that could go wrong and make sure you have all those eventualities covered.
Do you have any regrets?
There are always things in life that you might regret, and there are probably a lot of business decisions I regret — but I try not to dwell on them. I move on to more positive things.
The No. 1 reason why friends dump friends on Facebook is when they get fed up seeing too many useless posts, according to new research out of the University of Colorado Denver Business School.
1. A Classic Manager – Somebody who takes care of the organization and makes sure tasks are broken up into manageable actions and how they’re going to be measured.
2. A Champion of the Customer – Somebody who empathizes and understands how customers will see it.
3. Strategist or Visionary – Somebody who sets goals for where the organization needs to go.
4. Enforcer – Somebody who says: “We’ve stared at this issue long enough. We’re going to make a decision. We’re going to deal with whatever conflict we have.”
“Researchers are finding indications that obesity, diabetes and mental illness among adults are all related in part to what happened in the womb decades earlier.
One of the first careful studies in this field found that birth weight (a proxy for nutrition in the womb) helped predict whether an adult would suffer from heart disease half a century later. Scrawny babies were much more likely to suffer heart problems in middle age.
Perhaps the most striking finding is that a stressful uterine environment may be a mechanism that allows poverty to replicate itself generation after generation…or kids facing stresses before birth appear to have lower educational attainment, lower incomes and worse health throughout their lives.”
Perhaps it’ll be when Jeremy Lin plays his first meaningful minute in a Golden State Warriors uniform. Or scores his first point. Or pulls off a sensational move against a bona fide superstar in the NBA. No matter which pivotal moment Jeremy and the media deem most important, to most people in the Asian-American community, it was the chance to finally play that will be considered most special.
In many respects, Asian-Americans have overachieved given their relatively short history amongst American racial minorities. Yet, in fields where meritocracy is buried beneath the burden of stereotypes and public perception – industries such as music, film, politics and even the corporate world – the Asian-American face has shone least bright.
During my childhood, our community had one face we were proud to call our own, that of Michael Chang’s. He wasn’t merely good enough to play professionally, he was one of the elites of tennis, an area where true performance, hard-work, and perseverance was rewarded. We finally saw someone who looked like us on television, magazines, and advertising.
Yet, basketball, like most team sports, contain a measurable amount of subjectivity in evaluating a player. Jeremy had all the necessary requisites to become a touted recruit for a number of Division 1 teams. He captained the Palo Alto basketball team to a State Championship while racking up very impressive stats: 15.1 points, 7.1 assists, 6.2 rebounds and 5.0 steals. He was only invited to red-shirt with Stanford and UCLA, but had the opportunity to start and star at Harvard.
While at Harvard, Jeremy once again accumulated numerous accolades by his senior year but went undrafted in the 2010 NBA Draft.
It’s neither my place nor anybody else’s to say Jeremy deserved to be drafted or to receive a scholarship at a Pac-10 school. People are dealt the hands they are given and have to make the most of it. He could have bemoaned the unjust system of bastketball scouting for passing him over. He probably did or at least his ardent supporters must assuredly did, but he didn’t lose sight of his goal, even though in many in his position would have. In the wise words of Tracy Morgan, without struggle there can be no progress.
For Jeremy, whether he raised his game to new heights since college, or played the quarter of his life, or just had the talent all along but never given the chance, the NBA finally took notice when Jeremy stood on equal footing against the most highly regarded draftee since LeBron James.
To get to this point, there were many what-ifs in play. What if Donnie Nelson hadn’t invite Jeremy to the NBA Summer League. What if Roddy Beaubois hadn’t gotten hurt so that Jeremy could have more playing time in order to get comfortable? What if that game happened against a different opponent besides the Washington Wizards and John Wall, the consensus No. 1 player in the Draft?
This was the hand Jeremy was dealt with and he made the most of it. I applaud Donnie Nelson and the Golden State Warriors for giving him the opportunity to succeed. It means a tremendous amount to the Asian-American community.
What the community shouldn’t do is place undue pressure on Jeremy Lin and deem him to be the Great Asian Hope. At the same time, he should realize that what he’s doing is breaking enormous ground in American cultural stereotype and perception. It saddens me a little to read this in a recent interview with ESPN TrueHoop.
How important is the [Asian-American] identity stuff?
You know, it’s important but not as important as my being a Christian. That’s first and foremost the most important thing to me when it comes to my identity.
I can understand why he would want to distance himself from being considered special; he must have had that stigma work against him his whole basketball playing life. However, I hope he understands that before there can be a Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, or Dwyane Wade (just kidding Lebron, you can be in here too), there first be a Jackie Robinson. To me, they are all equally special.
When Jeremy Lin puts on that Warriors jersey, the Asian-American community can finally say we have one of our own playing in the NBA. Of all the major sports in American culture, basketball is the only sport that most Asian-American households follow with any fervor. I can only imagine that passion intensifying and hope this moment paves the road for more Asian-Americans to pursue their dreams of playing in the NBA.
For the record, Jeremy Lin is the first American-born Asian to play in the NBA.
Wat Misaka, I love you. I probably would have a poster of you on my wall if I was born in the 1940s, but that was clearly a different era.
Rex Walters, if the public wouldn’t even consider Tiger Woods, who is more Asian (half) than African-American (quarter), then sadly you can’t count either. I am sure you are crushed.
What portion of your day do you spend in front of a digital screen? Like most people, the answer would undoubtedly be substantially higher than it was 5 years or even a year ago. However, whether this is cause for concern remains to be seen with the public at large. It certainly is alarming enough for the New York Times to run three provocative editorials in one week expounding on the adverse effects computers and Internet use is causing our society.
While many people say multitasking makes them more productive, research shows otherwise. Heavy multitaskers actually have more trouble focusing and shutting out irrelevant information, scientists say, and they experience more stress.
And scientists are discovering that even after the multitasking ends, fractured thinking and lack of focus persist. In other words, this is also your brain off computers.
The problem is similar to an eating disorder. Technology, like food, is an essential part of daily life, and those suffering from disordered online behavior cannot give it up entirely and instead have to learn moderation and controlled use. Researchers suggest therapy to determine the underlying issues that set off a person’s need to use the Internet “as a way of escape.”
Much of the concern about cellphones and instant messaging and Twitter has been focused on how children who incessantly use the technology are affected by it. But parents’ use of such technology — and its effect on their offspring — is now becoming an equal source of concern to some child-development researchers.
Over and over, kids raised the same three examples of feeling hurt and not wanting to show it when their mom or dad would be on their devices instead of paying attention to them: at meals, during pickup after either school or an extracurricular activity, and during sports events.
Data certainly shows the increase in Internet usage has been dramatic. Since 2001, the average amount of time US adults spend online per week has more than doubled. Harris Interactive’s annual poll revealed that average Internet hours grew slowly between 2001 and 2006, but took off in 2007 and increased even more rapidly in 2008.
Is the Internet Making Us Dumber?
The most heated discussion, however, seems to center around Nick Carr’s latest book, The Shallows: What The Internet Is Doing To Our Brains, which argues that due to the strong disruptions in thought caused by emails, instant messaging, surfing, etc., our brains lack the necessary focus to forge strong neural bonds. As a result, the depths of our thoughts are shallow, and our short-term memory is weakened.
Erick Schonfeld of TechCrunch, raises the point that Nick Carr’s arguments is a bit self-serving since as an author who makes money writing books, Carr would be committing professional cannibalism if he argued otherwise. Of course, the same could be said about Sconfeld. He does make one irrefutable statement, which is the brain was made to be rewired and changed on a constant basis.
This argument forms the basis of Navneet Alang’s editorial, For Better and Worse, The Web Is Changing How We Think, which I found to be the most credible. As one of the most adaptive part of the human body, how we condition our brain to function will inevitably be how it will work most efficiently. Alang believes that in a highly complex and networked social and professional environment, we prime our brains to think in non-linear, dynamic ways. Networking thinking, according to Alang, assists in the often multi-layered problems we face on a daily basis, such as figuring out the financial crisis.
In my opinion, while the Internet was first created as a tool, it soon became an indispensable part to people’s lives, relied upon to such an extent that could be considered damaging to our society. Texts, instant messaging, and emails soon took the place of verbal, and even face-to-face, communication. We as social humans are able to maintain a larger breadth of friendships and relationships, but at what cost to our more intimate and immediate ones?
We are able to consume information at larger rates than ever before, but at what cost to our attention span and about ability to think deeply? The analogy in the NYTimes article is apt, the Internet is akin to food, of which there must be conscious balance of knowing when to consume and when not to.
I wrote one of my first blog posts three years ago (reposted below) and examined Facebook along with every other tech pundit in the blogosphere. At the time, Facebook had opened up its network to include people beyond the college communities and was experiencing enormous growth.
However, the biggest news at the time from Facebook was that it would enable developers to create applications within in Facebook to tap into its enormous userbase. A writer from TechCrunch believed Facebook would soon serve as the internet’s operating system and eat Microsoft’s lunch.
In personal disbelief, I explained why Facebook could never become the next Microsoft or any large internet entity at the time, and can only become what it uniquely is, which is Facebook. I also took the opportunity to explain what I liked and disliked about Facebook and thought their application platform was a big mistake. Of course, as time would prove there were many things everyone got wrong including myself. Therefore, I’ll enumerate what has changed since three years ago.
The Facebook Platform was a Disaster.
The promise land of viral marketing on the Facebook network was soon abused by app developers and users were bombarded with messages and invites to “worthless” apps. To be fair, there were a number of very useful applications, but they were lost amongst the jungle that became people’s profiles and soon Facebook was becoming as bloated as MySpace.
We were never provided an effective way to find quality apps like we can with Firefox plugins. There was no easy search by rating or apps downloaded. Something had to change before users became disgruntled with the increasingly difficult to navigate user profile. Luckily, Facebook was smart enough to realize the traffic brought on by the applications was more harm than good.
Facebook Refocused on the Essentials
After a few iterations, applications on Facebook were pushed further and further behind the peripheral of the users, which all began with the implementation of tabs. Since the Platform was now secondary to Facebook, the interface was rededicated to values of Facebook, which was connecting people in a meaningful way. The newsfeed became a more and more important way to share both personal and public content with their friends and daily communication can now take place on one’s own Facebook profile.
The Facebook Platform was a Success
Since the aforementioned change, developers now had to create great, quality apps in order to capture mind share of Facebook users. What resulted was the proliferation of very immersive massive multi-player games such as Mafia Wars or Farmville. So addicting were these Facebook apps, that advertising and virtual item spending earned these developers hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue.
With a legitimate means of allowing 3rd-party developers to create valuable businesses, the platform can no longer be deemed a failure. Instead, it should serve as a preview into the vast potential of social software.
Facebook Really Did Become the Next Facebook
In my blog post, I wrote:
I can’t really see Facebook becoming the next Microsoft. Nor can I see it becoming the next Google. Windows was essential to using a computer and Google was essential to finding information and accessing the Internet. Both those companies fulfill essential needs for people. Facebook doesn’t really fulfill a need yet.
This was absolutely wrong on my part. Facebook has became as essential human interaction as email. There doesn’t seem to be any slowdown in its enormous growth, which is already at 400 million active users. In 2007, monthly unique visitors in February was at 19 million visitors. in 2010, it grew to 127 million visitors.
Its growth made almost no other social network in the Western world worth mentioning (MySpace who?), and attrition rate will continue to be close to zero as long as Facebook keeps improving its features. With recent plans to enter China, who knows where the ceiling is for Facebook?
Just like there won’t be another Microsoft or Google, I highly doubt there will be another Facebook.
What Happened to My Writing?
I will admit my writing has actually degraded in the three years since I last posted that article. I was willing to include my voice into my writing and didn’t care about public convention. At the present time, I don’t think I could have compared Facebook to a prostitute and have it make sense within the scope of an analysis.
I feel like Facebook is this girl I’ve been dating for all the right reasons (intelligence, personality, good looks), but then everyone else is starting to notice her because she decided to wear makeup, a push-up bra, maybe some net stockings and hooker boots.
However, I’m going to continue my pursuit of better and, hopefully, funnier writing.
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Facebook: The Next Facebook
Date Posted: August 2007
It’s been about two weeks since the entire blog community decided Facebook was the greatest web entity since Google. Don’t get me wrong, I use Facebook on a daily basis, along with Gmail, Netvibes (my RSS reader), and ESPN. However, my problem with this recent infatuation with Facebook because of its new platform is that it misses the whole point of why Facebook is so great. I feel like Facebook is this girl I’ve been dating for all the right reasons (intelligence, personality, good looks), but then everyone else is starting to notice her because she decided to wear makeup, a push-up bra, maybe some net stockings and hooker boots.
The communication between friends, the sharing of memories through photos, and other social features made Facebook what it is today. I place a ton of value in keeping in touch with friends, core and ancillary, which is why I don’t think Facebook is going to go away anytime soon. These applications/widgets on the Facebook platform certainly make the whole experience more enjoyable, but it doesn’t mean I can’t live without it. Innovations like the News Feed, in conjunction with killer apps like Photo and Events, make it what it is. It’s also the little things:
- Clicking on Emma’s photos gives you the link of ‘Photos of You and Emma’.
- Clicking on Emma’s profile shows our mutual friends
- A feed of recently tagged friends
- Setting your relationship status with another person on Facebook, thus linking them.
I could go on and on, but the point is, Facebook’s growth is attributable to them completely nailing the basics from functionality, ease of use and aesthetics, to the granular privacy settings. The Platform is a very nice addition and potentially an extremely important one – but it would be nothing without the strong foundation already in place. And a lot of the tech bloggers who have recently joined the bandwagon fail to mention this.
Granted it’s only been a few months since the platform launch, so hopefully we will see more useful apps, but so far I’ve found myself rarely using these applications on a regular basis. I do, however, like to look at other people’s pictures and stalk them. That will never get old.
Facebook is the Next ______
I can’t really see Facebook becoming the next Microsoft. Nor can I see it becoming the next Google. Windows was essential to using a computer and Google was essential to finding information and accessing the Internet. Both those companies fulfill essential needs for people. Facebook doesn’t really fulfill a need yet. But who cares? It is still and will always be a great service for high school students and college students. These people will always continue to use it to keep in touch with their friends as they grow older, but how much value will they get out of it once they grow older and start a family. Will it continue to be a staple in my life? I’m not sure. Hopefully, there’s continued innovation on Facebook for me to keep on using it. As long as Facebook is not acquired, we’ll continue to see new features roll out.
The Parakey acquisition does start to convince me that they are for real and not just pumping valuation for an exit that makes turning down Yahoo’s $1.6bn seem like a smart move. On that we can just wait and see. My major scepticism is an old media issue – social media is a lousy way to generate business versus search – no database of intentions and users too busy connecting with each other to read the ads. I have seen this viewed as old media thinking, but revenue has to come from somewhere – subscrīptions or ads and I cannot believe it is going to be subscrīptions
I also think that social media may have reverse economy of scale – the more join the less useful/cool it becomes for the original members and audiences bifurcate. Particularly if there is too much drive to monetize and marketers get a chance to push their products (in ultra cool, student friendly, heavily embedded and disguised ways of course) and then the smart people leave the “mall” for cooler places to hangout. My sense is that The Valley wants a big new success story to follow Google as well as a counterweight to Google. So there is a lot of motivation to have an open API where small start-ups can make money – perhaps some kind of eBay economy will emerge. However, when Microsoft was on the rise we saw lots of Microsoft killers get a lot of support and get nowhere. Nobody wants dominance by one player, whether Microsoft or Google. If Facebook remains closed their support from developers/start-ups will fade once the hype phase recedes. If they really open up then it could be a big deal.
I have seen one market where closed won out against open despite all the players rooting for open. That was when Bloomberg refused to distribute their data as digital data feeds for other platforms to slice and dice. Bloomberg’s demise was constantly predicted. They won by delivering a better service that really met the needs of traders. It was a classic focus, focus, focus story. If Facebook was focussed on one market – say college students – I could see them having that focus and just being the best. But being the best and most focused for everybody on the planet
Is There Real Stickiness?
I’m seeing people leave MySpace and LinkedIn and others to come to Facebook - they are abandoning their existing investments in terms of friend networks on those social networks and migrating to Facbook. Wonderful for Facebook for now, but what does Facebook do differently that prevents the same thing from happening to them when the next hot site rolls around? All that said, I love Facebook for what it is – a phenomenal social networking site that is making a lot of great moves to capture excitement. It also has some great applicability in the enterprise space given the exclusivity of work networks.
You see articles surfacing about the cut-rate pricing on Facebook ads because the click-through rates are horrendously bad. I know of others who ran campaigns over the past couple of years who saw the same thing. Facebook today is a poor advertising destination, regardless of how good in theory it should be. Given that this is their entire revenue model, that is a very serious problem. Without that solid revenue model they are a classic Web 1.0 “eyeballs are worth something!” company.
What made the Microsoft Windows platform so successful was the strength of its 3rd party ISV ecosystem, and how the Windows platform and economics enabled so many ISVs to be financially successful over the long run. I don’t see that today on Facebook – how exactly are ISVs monetizing all those Facebook widgets? Perhaps by driving people offsite back to the source Web sites? Ads in the widgets? Whatever could happen, it’s not happening much now.
Facebook’s Value is in its Openness (or Not)
When I first used Facebook in college the real value was in the closed community. It encouraged people who never had any intention to join a social network to join one because we all trusted the people in our network/college. It was a truly ingenius move. Although it recently opened up its network – probably when it realized it already saturated all of the college campuses – it’s still closed to people not on the network. That was a problem on MySpace. Pages on Facebook aren’t indexed by Google and only people in your trusted closed community can see your profile. Even the platform isn’t really open; developers can’t port their Facebook applications over to any other platform or system. I have been wondering how long it would take before the elephant in the room was exposed. How many companies are going to devote time and resources to building applications for a silo that use proprietary code that cannot be reused outside of the silo and that can only have a limited amount of possible users? It is not surprising that there are rumors that Microsoft wants to buy them. I also find it interesting that Marc Andreessen would come out in anyway to support a closed silo that attempts to create its own version of the Internet. Currently most Social Networking sites create closed silos of user information and content that cannot be easily shared, reused, or redistributed outside of the network. Facebook is a closed Silo. Myspace is a closed Silo. A Facebook member cannot export their Profile to Myspace. A Myspace member cannot export their profile to Facebook. This is not because their is no technical way to export member profiles; its because both companies want to lock users into the Myspace and Facebook silos.
The Facebook “Open” platform is not only a gimmick it is also an Orwellian attempt to hi-jack and redefine the term “Open.” I think that many “Open” source proponents would agree that “Open,” when it refers to software applications at the very least, means interoperability. Facebook is not interoperable. Myspace is not interoperable. From today onwards, it is my hope that those reporting on and covering Facebook will no longer use the term “Open” to describe the Facebook platform. The data and content that members own cannot be easily exported out, or used with many other existing internet applications. The flow of data and information is one way. The Open platform is in fact open for developers, but closed to the rest of the Internet. A one way vacuum of application development that can never expand to any users base other than Facebook. FaceBook is a “Closed” platform much the way that Microsoft is a closed Platform. Develop for Microsoft and your application will be dependent on Microsoft technology and will not easily port to any other platform. Develop for Facebook and your application will not work on any other platform. By developing applications for either you have limited the possible amount of networks that can distribute and use your application.
AOL at one time was also the darling of the internet. A big fat closed platform that attempted to lock in users. While AOL had quite a run, it was only a matter of time before users understood that AOL was not the Internet. That there were millions, and millions of other networks to participate in. Once the hole of reality was opened and members realized that they were free to go beyond the AOL wall, the flow of members leaving the silo could not be stopped.
Being different used to mean relentless persecution around the monkey bars or foursquare courts in elementary school. Little did these kids realize, standing out from the crowd meant the difference between success and mediocrity.
Intrigue naturally causes us to gravitate to those who are different from us. At the very least, we’ll talk about them. Personally, I’ve never met anymore more different than Jasper Wong. To give you an example of what I mean by different, I’ll elaborate on our first meeting.
Usually on a Saturday night, the streets of Lan Kwai Fong becomes the nightlife epicenter of Hong Kong with everybody dressed in their finest clubbing attire. Everybody except one person in a full pink spandex suit.
Gradually, I find out Jasper is an accomplished illustrator whose accolades count inclusion in Archive Magazine’s 200 Best Illustrators Worldwide. You’ll be hard pressed to find a more unique artist. In an interview with CNNgo, he recently recalled “drawing full of naked women with Mr. T heads, squirting rainbow lasers out of their ass and nipples.”
On a recent visit to San Francisco, I had the pleasant surprise of seeing artwork that was unmistakeably Jasper’s on bus stops and billboards all over the streets. I firmly believe the Bay Area has supplanted Wall Street as the most important area in the world, where its technology and innovation is affecting daily life at an uncanny rate. It is also where creativity is its most valuable currency and where art like Jasper’s can really be appreciated.
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You can see more of Jasper’s artwork on his gallery website here and personal blog here.
DT: How did you come to that realization you wanted to be an artist?
JW: Since I was a prepubescent child, I had the misconception that being an artist would lead to fast cars and loose women. Sadly, I was wrong. Bob Ross had the riches with his fluffy clouds and trees, but it wasn’t because of the paint. It was obviously due to his perfect afro and beard. Being Asian meant that the blessings and pleasures of facial hair would never come into fruition, so I’m single and I paint Mr. T naked.
Still no fast cars and loose women…
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DT: To the layman, art seems to be a creation built on inspiration and spur of the moment ideas. I’m sure there’s a lot of planning, work, and rework in the process of an artist. Can you talk about the steps you take in creating one of your pieces?
JW: It’s all about the process. The final pieces might be pleasurable to the eye and all, but the work, passion, and love behind the paint is where it’s really at. The process is in no way arduous in any respect, sometimes I just disappear into my work and flow. Those moments where I’m entirely consumed into my art is way better than sex. I might just be saying this because I haven’t been laid in awhile…
Damn…where the hell are the loose women that I was promised? Damn you Bob Ross!
DT: There’s a popular notion that it takes 10,000 hours to become an expert or achieve mastery in a field. How do you improve your craft as an artist?
JW: I read Malcom Gladwell books too…hahaha. Yea, the whole 10,000 hours to be an expert thang! Of course that is true! I’ve put in over 10,000 hours masturbating and I can now cum within .25 seconds. It’s amazing! Loose women can’t do that! Suck that, Bob Ross!
I improve my craft by always struggling to be better. Keeping my eyes and mind open. Pursuing creative pursuits on a daily basis. Basically, living life!
DT: What other artists do you like up to or find inspiration from, past and present?
Everything and everyone. Past and present and everything in between. Some of my all time favorites are Henry Darger, Daniel Johnston, Yoshitomo Nara, Keiichi Tanami, and so so many more! The list goes on forever and I keep finding more artists that I’m inspired by.
DT: In my opinion, you’re as creative with your words as you are with your art. If I let you run free, can you write a paragraph about yourself and your artwork?
JW: Damn it woman! Too much pressure! I’m working on a short animated film with a music video director and animator buddy of mines known as Malakias out of Helsinki, Finland. I’m helping to write the story for that bad boy, so keep your eyes peeled. You can get your taste there.
If you can’t wait then give me fast cars and loose women. Once that is provided on my front porch, then I’ll think about writing about myself for your exhibitionist ass.
DT: You recently collaborated on and launched the Pow Wow art event with Wu Yue to much fanfare and acclaim (See coverage 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9). How did that start up and are there plans to do more projects like these in the future?
JW: We had the idea and we made it happen! The key is to spend as little time talking about shit and just friggin’ do it! We are working on an event in China and I’m putting together some insanity with Wu Yue, Will Barras, and the 123Klan in Berlin. Making it happen! It’s the dream baby!
While in Sillicon Valley, I was fortunate to meet a lot of people who had an impact on the technology we use today. Yet, there were other industries that also affect us on a daily basis, with people that shape it one way or another. Fashion was one industry I didn’t think I’d be afforded the opportunity to learn about.
That was until I came to Hong Kong. Through working at alivenotdead.com, I had the opportunity to meet and befriend Eugene Kan, managing editor at Hypebeast.com, the influential online fashion magazine. There isn’t a more visited site which keeps a good pulse on the world of urban culture and fashion. Almost every new product or interesting piece of news is curated and editorialized by the Hypebeast team, led by Eugene.
However, I decided to ask Eugene for an interview not only because of his important role at Hypebeast, but also because of his many interests outside the world of fashion. I’ll try not to be redundant since Eugene’s already been interviewed a few times (See 1, 2, 3, 4, 5). You can follow Eugene on his twitter.
DT: When introduced to Hypebeast, my natural instinct was to compare it to what Techcrunch has done for the Internet industry, which was to server as a loudspeaker for what ever is important. Do you think that’s a fair comparison?
EK: I think there are some parrallels to be drawn for sure. I am always weary of making comparisons that succesful aspects of one industry can be applied to the other when speaking about the fashion vs. IT industry. My reason being is that they represent some very different cultures. Both are progressive in the sense of technology versus trend, but the foundation behind this is quite different. Being cool, branding or however you want to frame it, it’s the essence of fashion while tech seems to have a more utilitarian role in society that is well along the lines of creating a better world (or has the greater potential anyways).
DT: Hypebeast has become the first source for many product launches and fashion related news. Can you give us a history on how Hypebeast was able to develop that kind of relationship with brands?
EK: From the very get go, Hypebeast never really had to develop any pertinent relationships with brands. It was essentially an aggregator of news found from all over the place, whether it be releases at stores or fodder posted on forums. Even in this day in age, 1 to 1 contact with a brand isn’t necessary and you don’t have to base your success on this. But as you grow, inevitably these relationships will develop. Probably not the answer you were wanting but it really is just a matter of Hypebeast becoming more and more visible and from there people reach out.
Of course, often at times this may come on the back of incorrect postings but that’s often part of the new aspect of blogging as a media platform. I don’t necessarily agree cause you forgo quality for speed, but it is what it is. However, PR could learn to benefit from making things MUCH more efficient.
DT: Hypebeast’s Alexa ranking is around 4,000 and it has over 24,000 fans on Facebook. What has Hypebeast done right in terms of increasing viewership and establishing a brand?
EK: At the end of 2009, we took a more active stance in our social media, that meant updating more frequently, making better use of it. It’s been pretty succesful thus far as we’ve been able to add a decent amount of clicks through Facebook (more succesful than Twitter). I suspect that Twitter hasn’t been as strong because most people are checking from their phone while Facebook is group/fan page checking which may be done more via a desktop/laptop. I’m not too sure. But having said that, I guess Hypebeast as a brand comes down to our content and what we put out. We really want to be more than a blog, I’m still somewhat embarrassed to call myself a blogger and while it’s fun to joke and call myself one, I’d rather be an “editor” haha.
DT: In one of your previous interviews, you said you decide on what becomes features based on what your target audience wants to see and what you personally like. How would you describe your average Hypebeast reader? Does your personal taste ever clash with what your demographic wants to see or vice-versa?
EK: Haha… I can’t really say that i know who the target audience of Hypebeast is. In reality, HB is a shit-mix of A LOT of things and perhaps the reason it has become so big and well-trafficed is due to its diversity and expansiveness. Although one thing I can agree on is that one of our core demographics is the United States. By virtue of being located in Hong Kong, there’s a definite disconnection at times. For better or worse, the Internet has created a playing field where this aspect isn’t necessarily a downfall to not be among your core demographic. You may not have the most authentic voice but there are enough outlets to become educated on a lot of things these days and to pursue your interests.
I wouldn’t say that my personal taste clashes with that of our viewer, but I can see some of the stuff I really appreciate fall on deaf ears. That’s not a big deal, in some ways I don’t mind the fact that something I’m really digging (for example White Mountaineering 2009 fall/winter haha) isn’t appreciated by most of our readers. My job is to create content that I feel is a mixture of what our readers will like as well as what’s supposed to be the next shit. Feedback isn’t really all that important in my eyes, I guess my feedback loop is just by keeping my eyes and ears open on what things are becoming popular. But often at times, the ability to justify your decisions and actions, that ultimately is more important than what your viewers want.
DT: From our conversations, it seems like you’ll easily be as happy writing editorials for a tech blog as for Hypebeast. What tech product has been getting you excited?
EK: I don’t think that’s necessarily true haha. I think my interest in technology stems more from the fact that i want to see where we progress on a macroscopic level. Since tech is a big part of our lives, it just so happens that I like to pay attention to it. I just as much like to follow global economic trends and what not. But I think my interest is mostly on a societal level. I like to see each aspect intertwine to see how and why it affects society the way it does.
There aren’t really a lot of tech products that get me interested… probably cause I feel that I know exactly what I want in my life. I think for some people, the notion of new technology is so exciting cause it seemingly fills a hole in their lives that they never knew existed. For me personally, I try not to think that way so much. I try to come to terms with what are the tools before me and adapt myself and my workflow accordingly. Shit like the iPad or just readers in general aren’t exciting to me, that is not until they can come and replace magazines in its truest form. I know military-grade flexible LCDs are either available or being developed. Imagine that shit, something that can actually be thrown into your bag without any worry of breaking it… rolling it up, beating it up etc. That to me is a very realisitc goal for e-readers so until it gets there, I won’t be partaking in any of that nonsense.
If I really had to pick one, I’m interested to see how quickly Cloud computing develops. Ideally, I’d like to have the most seamless experience, computer to computer, anywhere in the world. Each person has their own personal set-up and regime that should work most efficiently to them, let’s replicate this experience for everybody. I can’t wait for Google or MS to develop Cloud-based operating systems which present everything together in neat, clean package… let’s hope the Internet’s infrastructure can withstand this haha.
DT: We’re doing this interview on Google Wave since it seems to be a middle ground between e-mail and instant messaging. It doesn’t seem to have reached it’s expected adoption. What do you think of it so far?
EK: I personally forced myself to learn how to use Google Wave and to mess with it as much as possible. I feel that early adoption has its benefit in the sense that you can learn things at a slower and more gradual pace rather than play catch-up. I instantly recognized its potential but unless they iron out even the most minor of bugs, it’s still a good idea. I’d rather not recite shit I read across the web of how to make it better, but I do think that it’s a cleaner and more concise way of building ideas and concepts.
DT: Since the music industry is in shambles, most musicians, especially hip-hop artists, are looking at other avenues to generate income off of their brand. Fashion seems to be one of the steps in that direction. What’s your take on this?
EK: I think few people have had the ability to transfer seamlessly from one arena to another and replicate their success to the same degree. It takes an incredible attitude and a great open mind to make things work. In reality you’re often going from something you know very well to something you’re less familiar with. I’m sure you’re familiar with that statistic that you need to practice something like 10,000 hours… there are only 24 hours in a day homie. Only way to make up a lack of knowledge is with the right attitude and the desire to soak shit up like a sponge. Time constraints, egos, whatever it may be can often be detrimental. But alas, there exists a large flock of sheep out there and for celebrities, it doesn’t mean they can’t be succesful selling other products like fashion, it’s whether they gain a level of respectability amongst the rest of the industry… but that’s not really all that important if cashing checks is the goal.
I’ll be adamant about this, the likes of Kanye West and Pharrell Williams ushered in a new wave of fashion that brought an unforeseen level of diversity. Only somebody of Kanye or Pharrell’s status could make it acceptable to travel seamlessly between high and street fashion and spawn a new generation of people interested in fashion. Who else has done a look books and collaborations with Bape as well as work with a fashion house like Louis Vuitton?
DT: You’ve been to a number of different cities in the world, especially in Asia. What country’s been a trendsetter in terms of fashion and what makes them so?
EK: I actually haven’t traveled nearly as much as I had wanted too nor have I spent as much time in the city’s I’ve visited. The easy answer I guess is Tokyo, but I would feel from my general understanding that Scandanavia would rival Japan for legitimate applicable fashion. Sure you can see some fucked up “next level” shit in Tokyo, but is it really something that is realistic and can be worn in a few years let alone in half a year? I would generally say no. But the Japanese also have a great respect for their craft. The commercial aspect of fashion is not often at the forefront of one’s motives for creating fashion.
Aside from a strong creative outlook in fashion, Japan’s garment production is second to none so that really helps push the agenda. I’m not really sure why Japan’s selective parts of culture are so well developed. I do have a feeling that their regimented life offers few areas of expression. And those outlets that are available, you better bet your sweet ass they’re going to use it to their fullest. So maybe that means that they get a little more drunk than they should, watch a little more rape-porn (ok this is a bit ignorant) than they should but it also means they really do a great job when it comes to making clothes.
DT: With China’s growing importance in almost every industry worth mentioning, where do you think it’s role is and will be in the world of fashion?
EK: I have some differing opinions on this. At the root of all this, I see two big issues when it comes to China and developing its own culture (not to say that the current trends won’t rectify the situation). With the limitations with censorship and the inability to consume and be subjected to new cultures and experiences, I think this slows down the amount of inspiration derived. I firmly believe education is the foundation of inspiration. No fucking way anybody can know everything about everything. Meaning if you keep an open mind to soak up information, you’re bound to find something of interest that you’ll look to pursue. While the lack of worldly experience is one thing, there is obviously a growing group of Chinese going abroad. So potentially, they have the chance to return to China with a more balanced outlook which embodies both their country of birth AND the culture of their schooling country. But how many are going abroad in the creative realm versus the tech and other professional industries? Lest we forget, not many Chinese parents push their kids towards a job that relies on creativity.
Secondly, the current trend in fashion as a manifestation of the country’s own culture is gaudy, conspicious fashion that tells those around them… look I have casssssssssh money. This has in itself created its own aesthetic. I would say that China’s own approach to flaunting wealth is a larger issue than fashion, meaning unless culture changes, we’re left with sensible products left on the shelves while highly branded products get bought up with ridiculous fever.
This post was inspired by my friend, Ian Huang, from Shanghai, who demonstrated how shopping for airfare is almost as fun as the trip itself. You can ask Ian for further travel tips on his Twitter.
Finding the cheapest possible airfare for your trip is often a matter of smart and persistent research. It often involves checking and comparing prices on a number of different flight dates, airport stops, and airline websites. However, saving money is the same as making money and often times you’ll find those hours researching airfare can lead to hundreds of dollars saved.
BOOK 21 DAYS IN ADVANCE
Most airlines consider ticket purchases beyond 21 days to be an advance-purchased ticket. In addition, airlines increase fares 21 days, 14 days, 7 days, and 3 days before your target date. However, there are still ways to save if you’ve missed these important deadlines. Lastminute.com and Lastminutetravel.com specialize in listing last minute flight and hotel deals especially for the weekend. Most online travel agencies and airline websites also have special sections for last minute travel deals as well.
TIME YOUR FLIGHT CAREFULLY
Due to supply and demand, flights are most expensive during the weekend and cheapest during the mid-week. In addition, airlines often release their special fare sales on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. If you are extra scrupulous, make use of online sites which use predictive pricing technology such as Yapta.com and Bing Travel. Both are great resources for tracking flight prices. If you are undecided in making a purchase, track your flight to see if prices are going up or down as days are passing to decide whether to buy now or wait. If you’ve already bought your ticket, Yapta can alert you to price drops so you can claim an airline refund.
For a complete guide on finding inexpensive airfare, check out these other sites I used for my research: Away.com and IndependentTraveler.com. However, their detailed suggestions apply more to US domestic flights. Traveling to and within Asia have their own comparable version of online travel agencies, aggregators, and airlines.
SEARCHING FOR THE CHEAPEST AIRFARE
When doing your search, there are three types of airfare websites: online travel agencies, travel search engines, and individual airlines.
1. Online Travel Agencies – Of the 3 options, online travel agencies often provide the most expensive results. This is due to OTAs purchasing flights on behalf of the airlines and redistributing them to consumers while earning a profit for the extra fee they charge consumers. However, since these companies must purchase airfare in bulk and are based on estimated sales, they can often misjudge and be forced to provide substantial discounts that even the original airline can’t match. Some examples are Ctrip.com (for China), and Zuji.com (for flights to and from Hong Kong, Singapore, Korea, Australia and New Zealand).
2. Travel Search Engines – While travel search engines are functionally very similar to online travel agencies, their business model is not predicated on fees, but instead redirect your purchase to the airlines themselves to collect a finder’s fee. Since they receive advertising revenue from the airlines instead of charging users a fee, their results are often cheaper. Examples include Qunar.com (for China), Momondo.com and Mobissimo.com (for flights from the US/Europe to Asia), and Wego.com (for China, Taiwan, Hong Kong).
3. Individual Airlines - Using a travel search engine provides the most efficient way to determine the cheapest dates, airports, airlines, connecting flights, and some combination thereof. If you’ve narrowed your search down, it’s best to purchase your flight directly from the individual airlines since you can be sure there will be no hidden fees and you’ll have a better chance of changing or refunding your ticket if you’ve changed your mind.
Knowing which airlines use which airports as a major hub also helps in finding the best deals. Thankfully, Wikipedia contains a list of all the major airline hubs, which shows all airlines and their corresponding home base. With a destination airport in mind, you can visit the matching airline’s website to receive the most flexible flight schedule and sometimes the cheapest airfare. In the best case, you’ll find packaged hotel deals that can be even cheaper than the flights themselves. These deals can be found in free eNewsletters that encourage direct visits and purchases from the airline. For example, if your destination is Hong Kong or you are based there, subscribe to Cathay Pacific’s Newsletter.
A new trend in airfare promotions is now making its way to Twitter. Already very popular in the US and Europe to assist airlines move their excess inventory, it is also catching on in Asia. You can find a fairly comprehensive list of Airlines’ Twitters on Listorious.
VISIT BUDGET AIRLINES’ WEBSITES
While this is related to visiting individual airlines, the savings is substantial enough to merit its own section. The most popular examples of no-frills or budget airlines are Southwest in the US and Ryanair in Europe. However, there are also equivalents in Asia and most other countries in the world. For example a flight from Singapore to Bali via Air Asia can be found for 32 SGD or 23 USD. Wikipedia has a list of discount carriers organized by home country.
CHECK THE LOAD OF A ROUTE
Revisiting the subject of supply and demand and the timing of your airfare purchase, knowing the load or available seats on your itinerary gives you the best indication of whether you need to purchase your flight ASAP. The most accurate data is closely guarded by the airlines due to security reasons, but one website, SeatCounter.com, gives an approximation of availability by booking class.
USE NEARBY AIRPORTS
On my trip to China, I decided to take a bus from Hong Kong to Shenzhen and fly domestically with considerable savings versus taking an international flight out of Hong Kong. Another example is taking a train from Shanghai to Hangzhou to fly out of HGH. The trade-off of an extra few hours can mean significant savings in airfare as these smaller airports often serve as hubs for budget airlines and supply and demand is in the consumer’s favor.
EXTRA TIP: FINDING THE BEST SEAT
This won’t save you money in airfare, but it could definitely aid you in comfort. When making a direct purchase from an airline website, users have the option to choose where to sit amongst the available seats. Not all seats are created equal, as some have more legroom while others won’t recline all the way back. SeatGuru.com can help you figure all of that out with a very detailed blueprint of the aircraft, color-coded to distinguish the good seats from the bad seats.
To most reviewers and tech pundits, the Apple iPad will be a disappointment once it actually hits the consumer market in March. Most have complained that it’s an over-sized iPod Touch that’s missing features such as a camera, USB port, etc. Yet, these critiques were made in expectations of the perfect netbook or next generation iPhone, which I don’t think was Apple’s or Steve Jobs’ intent.
In certain aspects, the iPad has an advantage over smartphones and netbooks. As media devices, the small form factors of the iPhone and Android-based phones make reading text and viewing video an unpleasant distraction at best. Netbooks, on the other hand, lack the convenience and always-on capabilities that seem essential in a portable device made for leisure rather than productivity.
The true comparison for the iPad should be with e-readers. Although these devices can’t do much besides show text on a screen, demand for the Kindle and Nook exceeded supply during their initial launches. For all the features critics have complained about the iPad lacking, it should seem incomprehensible that a monochrome tablet-wannabe could merit a $300+ price tag. Yet, it seems to have struck a chord with consumers who prefer the simplicity and unobtrusiveness of a thin, light-weight tablet. If a book requires a flat-service to stand on, two hands to operate, and turns off every 3 to 4 hours, would anyone purchase it? This is where e-readers succeed and netbooks/laptops fail. Form factor matters in the functionality of a device, and this is probably where Steve Jobs’ mind was at when he said the iPad will be the most important thing he’s ever done. If the immediate target for the iPad is the e-reader market, I’m assuming Apple’s next iteration of the iPad can compete on par with most mobile computers. Yet, I think Apple has a bigger goal.
For the longest time, the way we’ve interacted with technology has long been in the most crudest of forms – a knob here and a button there. The most complicated interaction thus far requires a keyboard and a mouse. Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard, Dell, various Taiwanese firms, and Apple realized the transformative effect the iPhone and it’s multi-touchscreen had on the mobile industry needed to be applied to our computers. In fact, I don’t doubt we’ll soon see the same transformation in the way we’ll interact with our household appliances, our travel vehicles, etc.
However, the iPad is far from being a perfect or even adequate replacement for the portable computer. According to MacLife, the iPad is missing the following features: camera, connectivity ports, multi-tasking capability, flash support, OS X and HDMI output. Mashable adds that it should have included drag-and-drop file management, native widescreen, 1080p video support, and SD slot. As a tablet, here’s what I would want the next iPad to have.
Incredible Battery Life
What has been lost amidst all the hoopla is the proprietary computing chip running the iPad. Apple bought a little-known semiconductor company, PA Semi, with the intent of building a power-efficient computer chip just for the iPad. The supposed claim is that battery life for the iPad is around 10 hours under intense video viewing, longer than all netbooks, but paling in comparison to the week-long usage of a Kindle. It’s unfair to compare an LCD screen to e-ink, but it’s a significant trade-off that somehow must be solved. Apple’s A4 chip is a step in that direction, but for ours and Apple’s sake I hope it reaches it fast.
Instant-on Capabilities
Using the iPhone’s lightweight OS was the most pragmatic solution for Apple. Mac OS X would have significantly reduced battery life and interfere with the responsiveness most consumers demand out of a portable device. Unlike the iPhone, which is an always-on device, the iPad has the luxury to be turned off, thus saving battery life (a key feature!). Yet, this benefit can be a nuisance if it takes an unacceptable time to start-up.
Ground-Breaking User Interface
At the same time, the iPhone OS was an easy way out for Apple. The company could have done a lot more in terms of interactivity, especially given the larger touchscreen real-estate. So far, how we’ve interacted with the iPhone and other touchscreen devices is just the tip of the iceberg on the potential of the interaction between our fingers (we’ve got 10) and a complex operating system. This video shows the extent of what we can do with this technology (please view at 4:50, it’s a must watch).
Voice-Assisted Typing
The one feature that all tablets must lack is obviously the keyboard. Most users would view that as a critical flaw when comparing a tablet to their laptops. In reality, most web browsing, texting, and instant messaging can be handled sufficiently with a virtual keyboard. It’s when business-critical emails come up that really require a physical keyboard. If there is a way to effectively integrate speech recognition software to a tablet device in order to make-up for the typing deficiencies inherent in a tablet, then I think the tablet can truly be used en masse.
“Life is an ongoing process of choosing between safety (out of fear and a need for defense) and risk (for the sake of progress and growth). Make the growth choice a dozen times a day.” - A. Maslow
I wrote one of my first blog posts three years ago (reposted below) and examined Facebook along with every other tech pundit in the blogosphere. At the time, Facebook had opened up its network to include people beyond the college communities and was experiencing enormous growth.
“Life is an ongoing process of choosing between safety (out of fear and a need for defense) and risk (for the sake of progress and growth). Make the growth choice a dozen times a day.” - A. Maslow